


Once Upon a Dream

by AvionVadion



Category: Twisted-Wonderland (Video Game)
Genre: Blood, Crowley showing off how kind he is, Curses, Eleanora (OC) is a hopeless flirt, F/M, Found Family, Fresh graduate gets put through school all over again, Friendship, M/M, Malleus has Yandere Dragon Instincts but they’re rather subtle, Mild Language, Multi, Mutual Pining, Other, Rating changed to mature to be safe, Romance, Severe Asthma, Slow Burn, Spoilers for game, Troublesome Trio, Violence, grim being a nuisance, i don't know how to tag, jade being sneaky, leech twins, leona being a grouchy gentleman, lilia being a dad, malleus being a mysterious goth nerd, she panic pines, why is it when something happens it's always you three
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-29
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:47:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 33
Words: 283,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23907166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvionVadion/pseuds/AvionVadion
Summary: School was a nightmare. Magical school, on the other hand, was even worse. All Eleanora wanted to do was take a nap and recover from a hard day at work, and instead she found herself waking up in a coffin being threatened by a talking cat. Now she's stuck trying to be the responsible one in a group of teenagers who keep making horrible decisions, leaving her to clean up their messes. Their messes, of course, often leading to several dorm leaders rampaging around campus. Why the headmaster even decided to make her a student, nonetheless a freshman, dumbfounds her. As if she were actually a beast tamer- ha.Eleanora is just doing her best not to get herself or anyone else killed. Isn't the best way to do that by making friends with the villains?
Relationships: Malleus Draconia/Original Character(s), supposed to be Malleus/OC
Comments: 171
Kudos: 716
Collections: oui





	1. Through The Looking Glass

Darkness. It encompassed all that was around it, threatening to swallow the world whole. There was no escape from it- it only dragged me deeper and deeper into an abyss. Tendrils of black coiled around my legs, sharp thorns sprouting and pricking at the soft flesh. They dug deep into my throat, strangling me and preventing any sound from coming out. When I tried to speak, to shout, their hold only tightened.

Yes… there was no escape.

_“Magic mirror on the wall…”_

I could feel the sickening warmth of blood as it trailed down my skin, the coldness of the room and the heat from the red liquid chilling me down to the very bone. With each droplet of blood against the inky black river below red flowers seemed to bloom- drifting along the current in a hauntingly beautiful fashion.

_“Who is the…?”_

I flinched and tugged against the thorny prison, tears pricking my eyes. Though my vision was obscured, I could almost make out something in this horrid nightmare- there, floating high above me! With a silver rim and antique design, it almost looked like a… mirror? The way the glass seemed to glow with a green flame was almost… familiar to me. Where had I seen that before? Even though this was nothing more than a lucid dream, it was hard for me to think through all this pain.

A part of me suggested I should stay far away from that fire. If I got too close I could end up getting burned… but… I didn’t exactly want to stay trapped in these thorns forever.

_“Those of you who are guided by the dark mirror…”_

Wait, what’s that? I see something inside the flames. More blood trail from my throat, wrists, and legs, the thorns digging deep and choking me as I tried to reach up- wriggling my fingers and stretching my arm out towards the visage within the glass.

_“As long as your heart desires…”_

I reached farther, straining my body and wounds, near suffocating as the pain became too much. The inside of my chest was absolutely _screaming_ as my lungs throbbed for air, heart racing so bad it was practically slamming against my ribcage. I needed out. I needed to get away. I needed to...

_“...take the hand that appears in the mirror.”_

Despite my struggle the thorns never loosened their grip. I couldn’t get free no matter what tried. But then… the hand in the glass reached _out_ to me. Following it was an arm, and within seconds long slender fingers wrapped around my own short ones, the green flame within the mirror pouring out and washing over me. I had been expecting pain- an unbearable agony as my flesh was melted away.

Only it never came. Instead I was greeted with a gentle warmth, the heat only harming the thorns that were clinging to my frame.

_“For me and them, and for you… as we are all running out of time.”_

The vines became nothing more than ash, and the grip on my hand tightened as the stranger was pulled me up- dragging me into the mirror and into pure darkness once more.

_“So no matter what… never let go of that hand.”_

…

Holidays were the absolute _worst_ for retail workers, I swear. I really am so lucky the managers are so understanding and nice. I don’t even understand why they put up with me. I frustrate even myself. Gods, yesterday had been so long… my lungs were absolutely exhausted from all the talking and moving around I had to do.

I shifted in place, grimacing a bit as I felt my body trying to wake. I really didn’t want to leave bed yet; it was my day off, after all. I needed to sleep and recover. But I also needed to use my medicine if I wanted to survive the day, so that’s a thing… ugh. Such a pain. I hate it. I rolled over onto my side, reaching out for my pillow, and paused when I felt my knuckles hit… the headboard? No, that wasn’t right. I blinked, groggily opening my eyes and patting the hard wood.

Something was making a lot of noise, too- what was it? It didn’t sound like the combines or tractors I was used to. Someone was shouting. They were shouting and I was boxed in-? In what!? The frick is going on? I stretched my legs out and rolled onto my back, holding my arms out to my side and feeling the length of the weird cage I was in. There were no bars- it was just solid wooden walls. It was completely black.

How was I even breathing in here? Shouldn’t I have suffocated to death? There were no airholes, otherwise there would be light filtering in…

Gods, _what_ is making that racket? Wait. Was I kidnapped? Oh gods, I was totally kidnapped, wasn’t I? Oh no. No, no, no. This is bad. This is really really bad. I don’t like this. I want to go home. I know I don’t make that much a difference in the world since all I do is play video games and watch anime, but come on-! Don’t kill me off like this! Please…

I don’t want to die.

I’m scared.

Swallowing down the lump in my throat, I tried to steady my breathing. I-I have to stay calm. I need to figure out how to get out of here. It’s hard trying to raise my knees up to kick this dumb box in, but… maybe if I attack the side? The screws or nails or whatever will have to come loose eventually, right? Oh, but then I’ll be too worn out to escape my kidnapper. Frick.

I don’t exactly have the lung capacity to run away. I’m screwed.

Ack, there's movement again. I can actually hear what the voice is saying now. “-people are gonna be coming soon! Gotta get that uniform…” Holy frick, why are they pounding on the lid? Aren’t they one who stuck me in here? Wait, or are they ensuring I’m stuck in here? What uniform are they talking about? “Nnnngaaah! Hah… damn. This lid is too heavy!”

Lid… wait.

I hurriedly felt the shape of this prison again. It felt… oddly coffin-esque.

Frick. Were they gonna bury me alive!? Nope. No. I don’t care. If I wear myself out so be it; I’m not going to die like this. If I am to die it was going to be on my own terms. Taking a deep breath, I curled my knees back and readied to kick the lid. Thank gods I was so small.

“That’s it!” I heard. “Time for my last resort… here goes! Hraaaah!”

My feet- or rather part of them- hit the lid at the same time the stranger did, sending the lid sailing off. I barely retracted my legs in time to escape the heat of hot blue flames, and I let out a startled shriek. I hurriedly flattened myself, hands pressing to the walls on either side of me in fear of getting burned. What the hell-!? Screw this! My teeth grit together as I waited for the flames to stop, foolishly hoping that maybe the attacker would just go away, but when the fire dispersed the thing that I saw peer into the coffin wasn’t a human.

It was a cat. A mostly black-furred tuxedo cat with bright cerulean eyes, who had blue flames poking out of its ears instead of fur. Seeing me stare with big eyes the cat let out a _shriek_ and jumped back, giving me room to sit up. I was a bit hesitant, but the lid was off and I could see around me. And around me… _oh gods…_

I don’t even know how to begin describing it. There was a large decorative mirror in the middle of the room and surrounding it… floating in the air… were coffins. Coffins with a big glowing green orb in their centers. That confirmed it; this was a dream. It had to be. It only made sense that way. Especially since the cat was freaking _talking_ now.

“Wh-What are you d-doing awake!?” It squealed. “You’re supposed to be asleep!”

“In all fairness, I was.” I responded, a bit breathless. I was starting to relax now that I had reached the conclusion that this was just a figment of my imagination. “You woke me up.”

Ah- hold on. That cat is wearing a striped bowtie around its neck; is it a collar? The tail is a bit weird, though… what with it resembling a pitchfork- only instead of triangular points it had spades. Just what did those blue flames remind me of? I should know this. I feel like it’s super obvious. I glanced up at all the coffins again, confused as to why mine was the only one on the ground.

“This is… so weird.” How is it working? I don’t see any wires holding them up. “They’re actually floating…”

“Of course they’re floating, you stupid human!” The cat snapped.

I recoiled, having not expected being yelled at, and retracted my hands close to my chest. It was then I noticed that my pajamas were gone. What once was an oversized t-shirt and sweatpants were now some kind of… occult robe?

My pants were black and were tucked into some rather fancy boots, and the shirt was very much a button-up with some kind of golden embroidery on the chest. It was really long, with the hem splitting into several layers and flaring out to the sides, and over it was the weird occult robe.There was a purple cloth belt at my waist holding it together, a golden clip in the middle. Meanwhile the robe itself was almost entirely black save for the embroidery lacing the hems, and the inside fabric was purple with a golden pattern of two keys intersecting one another.

Those keys… reminded me of something. Something important to me. But what was it?

“This is a school of a magic!” The cat’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I tensed, alarmed. School? No way. I refuse. I already did my fair share of it. Actually, hold on-

“Magic?”

“Yes! And I, human, am the one and only: Grim the Great!”

“Oh…” I stared blankly, brain processing this information and trying to figure out what on earth had caused this weird dream. I awkwardly raised a hand, tiny fingers peeking out from beneath the large sleeve. “Nice to meet you?”

The cat laughed loudly. “You should be honored! Now, how about you give me those clothes of yours?” Um, what? He pointed at me with a paw, grinning and showing off a row of very sharp teeth. Blue flames danced from his claws and I jumped, halfway standing now, hands gripping the edges of the coffin tightly in preparation to move. What on earth did he want my clothes for!? “Otherwise… I’ll roast ya!”

Blue flames shot forward again and I yelped, ducking back and nearly hitting my head against the wood in my attempt to avoid them. I scooted back in the coffin, finding myself becoming irrationally afraid of this creature. Being burned alive by a cat- truly, the craziest dream yet! I don’t care anymore; I’m out of here. Screw this!

Without thinking I grasped the sides of the coffin again and vaulted over, grabbing the pillow simultaneously as I did so and hurling it at the cat in hopes for a distraction. Though my aim was perfect, the throw itself was weak and missed. It still startled the cat, thankfully, and that alone gave me enough time to rush out of the room. I was barely ten seconds into the run and I could already feel my lungs starting to ache, wheezing and shrivelling up inside my chest as my asthma acted up.

I… I can do this. Besides, like I said before- if I’m going to keel over it will happen in _my_ way. I don’t exactly want to die, especially by something as painful as this, but it was better than being burned alive. Frick…

M-Maybe I can just… find someone who can help? This is a magic school, right? There has to be someone who can take care of that evil fire-using cat. I wheezed and slowed down, pressing a hand to the nearest wall and leaning against it for support. I had run through a long corridor with paneless windows, passed by several classrooms… and yet there was still no one? Seriously?

I stumbled through a courtyard, surprised to see several apple tress and benches surrounding a four-way crosswalk. In the middle of the intersecting paths was a small well surrounded by foliage, and I momentarily stopped to catch my breath there. I was so dizzy; my legs were shaking so bad they were about to give out on me. I could barely even feel my arms.

_Tired… can’t breathe…_

No. No, I’m going to be fine. This is just a dream. A… crazily realistic dream, save for all the fire and the floating coffins. Magic doesn’t exist. Eyes growing wide when I heard a familiar voice shouting, I closed my eyes for a second and then pushed against the well- forcing myself into another run, moving a lot slower this time around. Spots danced in my blurry vision, but I kept going. I had to.

Someone…

There has to be someone in this place! Teachers, students…! Even the principal!

Please…

I know I hate asking for help, but just this once- _save me!_

My feet were dragging behind me now, an arm around my abdomen where my aching ribs were, my other hand digging into my chest where my heart was pounding, lungs feeling as though they were boiling in acid. It hurts…! It hurts so much. Get me out of here! I don’t like this dream. I want to wake up.

My medicine… damn it, I need it now more than ever! I’m not going to last much longer at this rate.

Hearing Grim howl in the distance I panicked, forcing my legs to move faster so I could throw myself into the nearest room, slamming the door shut and stumbling sideways as I lost balance. My toes hooked on a rug and I found myself falling, face-planting hard onto the floor. I was so out-of-breath that I couldn’t even shout in my surprise, only able to grit my teeth and brace myself for the landing. Then I was gasping, the world spinning around me as I tried to and failed to calm down.

Have to… keep going…

My fingers clawed at the rug, trying to get my body to move but lacking the strength to actually do so. This was it. I was dead. Would I wake up if I was killed…? No, no, I don’t to think about it. I just want this nightmare to end. Please. It hurts. I can’t breathe. I can’t think. Tears were burning my eyes. Sweat beaded down the sides of my face, skin warm and most certainly feverish. This robe was starting to grow a bit too stuffy.

I’m so scared…

I can hear the doors creaking loudly as they opened, taunting me, mocking my pitiful attempts of escape. A part of me wondered if I took off the robe and just handed it to the cat, would it leave me alone? Maybe I should just throw it at him and see how _he_ liked to suffocate. “Kehehehe~ did you really think you could get away from me?” Blue flames licked the ground, burning away at the rug and slowly dancing their way over to the many bookshelves in the room. “My sense of smell is as great as I am! Stupid human.”

No…

My lips curled back and my spotted vision blurred even more, doubles becoming triples, and the hood of my robe- which had fallen over my head when I tripped- dipped even lower into my face. I began to tremble, the fear inside me bubbling into pure unadulterated terror as he approached. _I-I don’t want this._ This is too much. Why haven’t I woken up yet? I’m so scared.

I need to get away, but I can’t move. Grim was grinning maliciously at me, taking another step forward. “If you want to get scorched by my flames,” He began, watching as I coughed and wheezed, “then you better hand over that-!” He wasn’t able to finish. A whip lashed out from behind, striking the creature hard across the back and sending him flying into a table. The cat cried out and fell to the floor, and was about to pick himself up when the whip lashed out again and wrapped around him, trapping him. “Wh-What’s with this cord!?”

“It is no mere cord!” A man bellowed, stepping farther into the room. I slowly shifted in place, pushing myself up onto my knees and watching with a dazed expression as he approached. He was certainly strange, what with a crow mask covering the upper half of his face. The only thing I could make out of his eyes were these little glowing orbs. “This is a whip of love! And you!” He turned towards me, seeing how I was still on the floor. “Who said you could just wander off on your own like that? I’ve been looking everywhere!”

“...H-Huh?”

He marched over, tugging at the whip and causing Grim to become even more tangled in it, curling the cat over to him until he was tucked to the man’s side. “You are one of the new students, aren’t you?” He shook his head scoldingly at me. I could say nothing in response, too lightheaded and dazed, brain still trying to process the fact that I was alive. That I had been saved. Grim struggled in the man’s hold, trying to escape, but it was pointless. “You should know better than to do things like this! Not only did you leave the gate on your own, but you brought an untamed familiar with you to school! Do you know how many rules you’ve violated while doing so? What do you have to say for yourself? Hm? Hmmm?”

I am… so confused. I opened my mouth to speak, but Grim beat me to it. “I-I’m not his freakin’ familiar! Let me go!”

I didn’t even notice the cat mess up my pronouns. Because of the way I dressed during winter sometimes and how I kept my hair short, I had a lot of customers misgender me at work thinking I was a young boy. It didn’t bother me; I found it rather amusing, actually, and tried to make jokes out of it… especially when it was a little kid who did it. But I was just so _tired_ that the thought to correct them didn’t even come to me.

“Yes, yes.” The man said, rolling his eyes. “All rebellious familiars say that. Quiet yourself for a moment.” Grim’s shouts were muffled as the man held him to his chest, covering his muzzle with a gloved hand. “My goodness… talk about unprecedented…”

Finally getting a bit of oxygen back into my lungs now that I wasn’t running for my life, I let out a breathy apology, still a bit dumbfounded by everything. I wasn’t quite sure what was going on, the cogs in my brain needing a bit more oil before they could work correctly, but it was clear this man was upset. “I-I… I’m sorry…”

He huffed. “As long as you understand your mistake and learn from this, there will be no punishment… for I am kind. Alright?” The man walked forward, keeping Grim’s face pressed to his chest to silence him, and then he knelt down in front of me. I blinked, seeing his extended hand. “You look pale. Hmph; this is why you must _tame_ your familiars-then you wouldn’t be trembling like this. Such a foolish child. Can you stand?”

He extended a hand out to me. I stared at it for a moment, noting the weird claw-like armor pieces attached to his gloves. Though still shaking, I awkwardly placed my hand in his and let him pull me onto my feet, the man placing a hand on my shoulder to steady me when I almost lost balance again. My legs seriously felt like jello. Just that little bit of movement took a lot of me…

Yeah, I’m getting a bad feeling about this place.

The man started to talk again. “Follow me, will you please? The entrance ceremony is well under way and is bound to be ending soon. Ah- easy there.” He gave a light push to my back, guiding me out of the room while keeping Grim silent. “You’re lucky I am such a kind and understanding Headmaster! Forgiving you as easily as this… ahaha! I truly am so kind.”

I wasn’t so sure if that was actually the case since he kept mentioning it, but he did save me. I also disliked confrontation, so I wasn’t about to argue. If he wanted to believe he was kind then so be it; that was his prerogative. Especially if it meant I could keep living. I gave a tired nod at his words, physically and emotionally drained from all the exercise and torment I was just put through. I felt like I could fall asleep at any second, arms dangling at my sides and legs feeling like lead. “Tha… Thank you, sir.”

“You are most welcome!” He exclaimed. I glanced up at him, tensing a little when I saw how similar his teeth were to a certain fire-breathing cat’s. Each one was sharp and deadly, and could probably tear through flesh if needed. This person… wasn’t human. Maybe I shouldn’t trust this person, savior or not. Those glowing yellow eyes of his and those pointy teeth were causing massive warning bells to go off in my head. “The Hall of Mirrors is this way, young one. Do take care not to run away this time.”

“Um,” My eyebrows furrowed and I looked away, watching my feet to make sure I didn’t trip again, “y-yes, sir.”

He watched me as we walked, matching my pace despite his long legs once it became clear I was still too dazed to move quickly. “You’re a polite one, aren’t you? I would not have suspected that from a student who has already disregarded several rules.” I blinked sleepily, gazing up at him with half-lidded eyes. I felt so exhausted; it was hard for my emotions to make themselves known. The man frowned, something flickering in those glowing orbs of his. “Normally students wake up only after a special key is used to open their doors, but… you seem to be the exception. Why is that, I wonder?”

“Doors…? Oh.” He must mean the coffins. I glanced at Grim, who had finally stopped struggling and just resulted to slumping against the Headmaster’s side. “I-I don’t… know. I was asleep, but then… I heard noise. Grim was trying to open the coffin, I think.”

“Ah.” His frown deepened. “So in the end the familiar is to blame. Honestly, if you’re going to bring the familiar here with you then at least take responsibility and properly care for it! Familiars should not be _attacking_ or _scaring_ their masters!”

He keeps saying that. He also keeps saying something about me being a student, when I was mostly definitely _not_ one. I already did my time in school; I was not keen on going back. Math was my worst subject and I refused to be put through that hell again. “But Grim isn’t-”

“No buts! You are going to be a magician! No student of mine should be making such foolhardy excuses! Learn from this incident, understand? I do not want to see this again. Night Raven College is not a playground for children!”

Wait.

“N… Night Raven _what?”_

“Night Raven College.” He answered, guiding me through the courtyard. I recognized it as the one I had ran through before in my attempt to get away from the evil cat. “You’re clearly still disoriented from the transportation magic, not to mention the attack from your own familiar, so…” He hummed. “I suppose I can explain. I _am_ so benevolently kind, after all. I, Dire Crowley, am the Headmaster of this college. People blessed with the unique aptitude for magic gather from all over the world to join the most prestigious magical academy here in Twisted Wonderland! That academy being this one here.”

“Th-This is… seriously a magical academy?” Oh gods. This is insane. I brought a hand up under my hood, brushing my bangs back as I tried to take in this new information. “S-So… everyone in this college… can become wizards? A-And witches?”

“Magicians.” He corrected politely. “Only those magicians seen as worthy by the Mirror of Darkness can attend this school. Chosen ones use the Gate and are summoned here from around the world.”

There is way too much lore for me to process at once. “Gate?”

“The room you woke up in. With all the doors.”

My eyes widened. “Oooh…”

Those coffins must be the gates he was talking about. The Headmaster continued, ignoring Grim’s muffled protesting, “An Ebony Carriage carrying a gate should have gone to meet you as well. That carriage goes to welcome new students chosen by the Mirror of Darkness. They are special carriages that carry doors to the academy. It was decided _long ago_ that carriages were the best way to welcome people on special days.”

Hah? Who decided that? Wait…

I scrunched my nose up, coming to a halt as I tried to recall anything about a carriage. Headmaster Crowley stopped when he saw me quite walking, watching as I brought a hand up to my chin. “I-I remember… thorns and… maybe a forest?” It was so dark and cold. I think there was a pitch-black river, too. The Headmaster nodded at me with a polite smile.

“Yes! That is correct. Now come- we must not dawdle. The ceremony is nearing its close and we have yet to get you sorted.”

He placed a hand on my back and gave me another light push, urging me to walk forward. I had absolutely no magical capability at all, so there _must_ be some mistake being made here, but I was the right age for a college student so I suppose it could be possible after all. Especially if this truly was a dream.

A lucid dream, that is. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY SO: I only have translations to go by since I don't know how to speak or read Japanese. So this story will only go as far as there are game chapters translated until the Scarabia Chapter comes out and THAT gets translated. Also things will be getting changed up quite a bit later on, because I really like to mess around with plot lines and stuff. With that said, read and review! :3 Let me know what you guys think. Thank you.


	2. The Entrance Ceremony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So based on what we know of Vil now, I went back and redid two of his lines in the middle of the chapter. It's more fitting to his character now, I think.

Once my oxygen deprived brain finally caught up to the concept of magic existing in this place and that I had been _chosen_ to come here to this school, I had grown a little excited. I quickly squashed that excitement down, however, as I reminded myself that this was a dream. And in this dream Headmaster Crowley led me into a large room with another mirror, filled to the brim with several crowds of students. Their eyes all turned towards us and I tensed, freezing up as my anxiety decided to make itself known.

The people in the room had been theorizing as to where the headmaster had disappeared to earlier, and we arrived just in time to hear them. Dire Crowley was not happy. “I cannot believe you all!” He exclaimed, thoroughly upset at their accusations and assumptions. He curled his fingers around my left shoulder, making sure that _everyone_ knew I existed. “A student was missing so I went to find him! I did not “abandon my duties” or get a silly “stomachache”.”

They really didn’t have a lot of faith in the headmaster, did they? Thinking he skipped out on a ceremony because of a stomachache. Wait. I blinked, wondering if I heard wrong. I know Grim called me a boy earlier, but did this man really think I was one too? Doesn’t he have a list of the students? Did they not call roll-call to see who was missing?

Did… Did they just see the empty coffin and go “oh no, gotta find the person”? The frick? I awkwardly raised a hand, opening my mouth to speak, but the man cut me off- lowering his head to look at me. “You are the only one not to be assigned to a dormitory. I shall watch over this rebellious raccoon dog of yours, so step in front of the mirror.”

“W-Wha-? Uh, o-oh, right. Sorry.”

My gods, he was intense. I was not going to argue with him, nuh-uh. No way. Okay, breathe. I’m supposed to be a freaking adult, so I should start acting like one. Jeez. Granted, I did only graduate high school about a year ago… ugh. This is so lame. I don’t want to do this; everyone is staring at me. I worried my bottom lip and fiddled with my sleeves, tugging on them as I awkwardly made my way over to the mirror floating in the center of the room.

Standing around the mirror were six people- all of whom were rather tall except one, who was more of an average height. Seeing their gazes on me I ducked my head, trying to avoid their stares. Walking this short distance really felt like an eternity, but even as I finally reached the mirror there was no relief. I only felt confusion and concern.

This mirror… it really looked familiar. Hauntingly so. A pale mask of a face stood within the glass, black masquerade lines painted around its eyes as though to make it more mysterious. Green smoke wafted around the mask, only adding to the sense of foreboding that had formed in the pit of my stomach. When it spoke I jumped back, letting out a startled squeak, and hearing several people snicker in the background I felt my face flush- embarrassed and a little ashamed by how easy it was for me to get jumpscared.

_“State thy name.”_

Seriously though, where have I seen this mirror before? It was at the back of the mind, clawing at my brain, but it was if something was refusing me entry to that knowledge. It was frustrating because I _know_ that I recognize this darn thing, which honestly doesn’t make much sense. But if this is a dream then something from the outside world had to have affected my subconscious, which means that it must be from a movie or a game, or something of the sort. But what?

The silence becoming a little too unbearable, I figured it was time for me to answer the mirror’s question. “It’s, uh...” I cleared my throat, speaking loud enough for the mirror to hear, tensing as I thought about how everyone else could probably hear me too since it was so freaking quiet in here. “Eleanora Quince?”

Whispering. I went still, tugging at the hems of my sleeves nervously as I waited for the mirror to speak. Everyone was muttering about how weird and girlish my name sounded. What? Did they all think I was a boy, too? Boys can have girl names. Shove off and leave me alone. All names should probably just be unisex at this point.

_“The shape of thy soul…”_

Oh frick, the mirror is talking. Okay. Easy, girl. I wasn’t sure what to expect orif I should even be expecting anything, as I knew nothing about this place. But I found myself feeling greatly anxious all the same, wanting to appease everyone in this room just enough to get them to stop whispering about me. The face in the mirror opened its eyes after a moment, the empty sockets boring into my very being.

_“I do not know.”_

I stared dumbfounded, blinking a couple of times as the news processed. “Hah?”

“How is this possible!? ”I heard Headmaster Crowley gasp, the man rushing over in alarm.

_“Color and soul, the shape magic takes; there it not a single spark within for her to create. She is not suited for any dormitory.”_

“Wait…” The Headmaster paused. He frowned. “What did you just say?”

The mask closed its eyes, speaking once more. _“Heartslabyul, Savanaclaw, Octavinelle, Scarabia, Pomefiore, Ignihyde, Diasomnia… she is suited for none.”_

There was no rhyme, but the meaning was clear. I could not go to this college. Stepping back nervously and curling my hands to my chest, no longer caring about appearing confident, I tried to figure out what was going to happen to me now that this magic mirror just straight-up rejected me. Being told I have no shape or color in my soul… was it saying I was plain? Bland? Ordinary?

Maybe so… I’m pretty sickly and frail as is, and all I really have going for me is my art and music skills. I’m pretty average over all. I’m not hot-headed or feisty like my siblings; heck, I can hardly even be myself due to my health condition. I like to be loud and goofy, but in reality I have to remain quiet and learn to stop talking so I can function. I can barely even do my job at work and the whole reason customers love me is _because_ of how bubbly I am.

And not being able to be of use, of not being able to be myself is… scary. I don’t want to shut my personality away; I don’t want to be discarded. I don’t want… to be left alone.

This dream- it feels as though it’s mocking me. All my darker thoughts and feelings have been coming to the surface more frequently since I woke up in the coffin. I jolted when a pair of hands suddenly clamped down on my shoulders, the action causing me to look up with wide eyes at Headmaster Crowley. “State your name.”

“H-Hah? O-Oh, um,” This was weird. His lips had drawn into a thin line, his glowing yellow eyes boring into me from behind the mask he was wearing. I answered, voice wavering a little due to his intense stare, “Eleanora Quince...”

The man released me, stumbling back and bringing his hands up to his face. I took a nervous step back- only to pause and glance behind me nervously when I saw that I almost crashed into one of the many people surrounding the mirror. Cold lilac eyes watched me as I moved away, and I wondered what it was I had done so wrong that was making Headmaster Crowley act in such a way. Maybe there was somehow an escape route I could take to get out of this uncomfortable situation…?

These important looking people around the mirror- they were all watching. Muttering.

Even the crowds were gossiping with hushed voices.

“This is impossible…!” Headmaster Crowley cried. “In all my years _never_ has the mirror brought a girl here! This is an all-boys school! How could such a mistake even be made!?”

Oh no. Oh frick. Yeah, I really wasn’t supposed to be here. Hands curling close to my chest as I felt my heart pick up pace, I shifted my feet again. Perhaps I was imagining it, but I was starting to feel like I was surrounded. My anxiety was spiking to unhealthy levels and my hands raised up to curl around the back of my neck, elbows almost touching as I shrunk down. “I-I’m sorry…”

“No, no; this must just be a misunderstanding!” Headmaster Crowley continued, taking a deep breath. He still looked rather shaken. The whip holding Grim loosened ever-so-slightly, allowing the fire-breathing cat to land on the floor and letting him get to work on untangling himself. The headmaster glared at the mirror. “The Ebony Carriage would never pick up someone who can’t use magic, nonetheless a girl! Such a grave error hasn’t been made in a hundred years- _at least!_ So why?”

He looked down at me again, glowing eyes flickering briefly as he brought a clawed hand up to his chin. My shoulders scrunched up and I glanced away again, shuffling side-to-side, only growing more nervous as the whispers kept continuing. Grey eyes beneath a hood were narrowed, scrutinizing me, while a pair of blue ones calmly watched- a finger tapping against a jawline inquisitively. The lilac eyes from before were still cold, but the pair next to it- colored a bright shade of red- were full of a childish curiosity.

And out of all those eyes surrounding my immediate vicinity only one I had trouble reading. Only one left me more unnerved than the rest.

Emerald orbs that seemed to almost glow in this dark room, peering out from the shadows and simply watching. With a quirked eyebrow and a pair of arms folded over a broad chest, I felt like a rabbit- trapped in a den of wolves that were surely about to attack any moment. It was only more unnerving since his pupils weren’t exactly… human. They were slit, as though the man was more beastly than what his shape tried to let on.

Swallowing thickly, I tore my gaze away and focused on Headmaster Crowley once more- hoping that I would get away from this place with my life and sanity in tact. “Why now of all times…?”

Wait- _Grim!_ He was gone! Where did he…?

“How about I take her place then!?” There! Everyone turned to see the evil cat standing several feet away from Headmaster Crowley. He had freed himself successfully from the whip-of-love and was currently showing off a shark-toothed grin. His eyes turned to me and I tensed, bracing my legs for action as I held an arm out- preparing to dodge whatever flames he sent my way. His tail lashed fiercely behind him and then he charged, shouting. “Give me that uniform!”

The Headmaster lashed out with his whip. “You rebellious- _stay right there!”_

He watched as Grim jumped and avoided the hit, and seeing him flying right towards my face I yelped and ducked, swinging my hand at him full-force. I was hoping to smack him away, but my plan didn’t work the way I wanted it to. He dug his shark teeth into my flesh and tore into my palm, causing me to cry out and smack him with my other hand, sitting on one knee and trying to get him to let go. “O-Ow! Ow, ow, get off! Ow!”

My attempts only made him angrier.

“Miss Quince!” I heard Headmaster Crowley shout. A part of me didn’t want to hurt this creature, as I despised violence, but holy _frick_ was he making it hard not to. “Release her!”

“No!” Grim shouted, voice a bit muffled with my hand partway in his mouth. I grit my teeth and settled for thrashing my arm, keeping firm hold of my wrist and trying to shake him off. Grim clawed at me, removing his fangs long enough to speak. “Not until you let me take her place! Unlike this dumb human I can actually _use_ magic!”

I reached out to grab the scruff of his neck, but he snapped at me- biting again and causing both of my hands to bleed.

“Give meh tha’ unifohm!”

“How about _you_ give _me_ my hands back!?” I’ve had enough. Ignoring how breathless all this movement was making me, I grit my teeth and spun- yeeting the cursed little demon away from me. Grim rolled across the floor, muzzle covered in my blood, and I huffed as I glared him down. I could hear footsteps nearing behind me, though they stopped when I started to shout again. “You wanna freaking go, kitty? Huh? Who the _frick_ do you think you are!?”

I was ticked. I flicked my hands, shaking my wrists a little to ease some of the tension, blood trailing down my fingers. The red liquid was pooling up rather fast. Stepping forward, I pressed my injured palms together, applying pressure as I tried to disregard the pain, my brown eyes alight with fury. This creature has been a jerk to me all day. It was time he got a taste of his medicine.

“I don’t care if you are a cat,” I hissed loudly, “I’ll frackin’ butcher you!”

“Ha! I’d like to see you try!”

“Oh. _Oh_ , you wanna bet?” I was super dizzy at this point, but I didn’t care. This cat just tore up my drawing hand and I was going to make him pay.

I rolled my head and popped my neck, and moved one step closer as I got into a defensive stance. Now, please note that I have no actual experience in fighting. If I ever had been so unfortunate as to get into a fight back home I would have been knocked down in seconds, and I would probably have wound up dead or hospitalized due to either wounds or my own illness. But even with how lightheaded as I was feeling right now I was still convinced this was just a very lucid dream. Therefore- consequences be damned, I was going to fight this cat.

“Let’s go!” I ignored the dripping blood, glaring daggers at the creature before me. “I’ll toss you out a flippin’ window! Come on, kitty, let’s get this over with right _meow_!”

I have officially lost it. It’s confirmed. I think the thing that really got thrown out the window was my sanity and patience.

“Why you~!” Hoho, he was furious. A grin curled onto my face and I clapped my hands, flinching at the pain yet determined to keep up the act. “How dare you speak to me this way! You’re just a lowly human!”

“And you’re just a brat!” I snapped back.

Grim lunged.

In all my life I never once thought a day would come where I would be getting chased by a little demonic cat. Especially one who was so determined to steal my clothes. But here I was- smacking him away and kicking with my feet whenever he got a little too close, only getting cut up more as a result. Grim slashed at me with his claws and tried to bite at my ankles, and whenever he jumped I would out a yelp and stumble out of the way, nearly losing balance as the world spun. “You don’t know anything!”

I felt a little silly doing this, but he had pushed me to my limit. Elbowing him in the stomach when he leapt at my face again, I staggered backwards and hunched over, arms hanging lifelessly at my sides as they started to lose feeling. “Then… Then tell me! Tell me so I… so I _can_ know! Don’t just… a-attack me… again and again…!”

Oh gods, I think I’m going to be sick. Where did everyone go?

“This is… pointless! Violence… d-doesn’t…”

Ah. Why is the ceiling moving?

I wasn’t even aware I had collapsed until I was caught. An arm wrapped around my waist, keeping me from hitting the ground as soon as the world went dark. That darkness, however, didn’t last very long- as I found myself opening my eyes moments later in a slight panic. People were shouting and screaming, and blue flames were dancing around the entire room. Headmaster Crowley was trying to calm the crowds while the important-looking people from earlier were arguing, trying to figure out who should catch the rampaging Grim.

“Oi, you awake?” I blinked. Still too dazed to actually process the fact that I was being held in someone’s arms, I did not get embarrassed as I normally would have. Instead I found myself staring blankly at the face above me, wondering what on earth happened. There weren’t any flames thirty seconds ago. “Hmph. Damn rat.”

The stranger clicked his tongue and I tensed, seeing something scarily reminiscent to fangs poking out from behind his lips. A low growl escaped his throat.

“It seriously thinks it can attack a woman and get away with it?”

This was… the person with the green eyes. Now that he was a lot closer I could actually make out other features, such as his brown skin and hair, and the scar running across his left eye. He was intimidating, but that didn’t necessarily make him a bad person. Even if… he was sort of intimidating. The man set me down on my feet and I had to catch myself from falling, legs the equivalent of jelly. I watched as he stepped forward- cracking his knuckles with a twisted grin.

“I’ve decided.” He said, fangs poking out from behind his lips. His emerald orbs flashed dangerously. “I’m going to have that _rat_ for my dinner.”

...Oh gods. This man was both tall and terrifying, and I knew at once that I did not want to get on his bad side. I had the worst feeling as he approached Grim, mind imagining only the most grotesque ways of how he was going to stop the rampaging cat. He clearly wasn’t human, and based on what he said made it sound like he was intent on _eating_ the creature. Which meant… he was going to kill Grim.

Right? I hoped that wasn’t the case.

“Clearly you all need more proof of my magic!” Grim declared, shouting dramatically. “Behold my power!”

The grey-eyed boy who had been standing near the mirror threw out an arm, calling out a warning. “Everyone; get down!”

Having already experienced this first-hand I knew what was coming based on his pose. Fear crawled down my spine like little bugs and I tensed, momentarily panicking as I glanced around. Everyone was shouting, scurrying out of range. I myself tried to do the same, but my body wouldn’t listen. It was too exhausted and as a result I found myself tumbling sideways. Blue flames blew out of Grim’s mouth and overtook the area, and as they neared I squeezed my eyes shut- not sure if I was expecting pain or to wake up back home.

But… the pain never came.

Instead a weight came crashing into me, an arm coiling around my form while a hand grabbed the back of my head. The gruff green-eyed man from before saved me, rolling us both to safety just before the flames could hit us. He moved with such incredible speed; I didn’t even hear his feet move. In the distance someone was screaming, crying out for help as their butt had caught on fire. As the gruff stranger relaxed his hold and let me sit up, I was able to recognize the person that was screaming as the red-eyed boy from beside the mirror.

“Hey. You okay?” Huh? Oh, the gruff man is talking to me. He watched as I coughed into my sleeves, eyes half-lidded as the pain and dizziness hit me at full force, any words I was about to say dying on my lips. “Show me your hands.”

He didn’t give me much of a choice. He snatched my wrists up and eyed the damage with an irritable look on his face. I flinched, disturbed by all the screams and by just _how much_ blood there was. I wasn’t really paying attention to it until now, since the man was sort of holding my hands up in front of my face. “S-Sorry...”

It really was complete chaos in this room. I wanted to feel bad for antagonizing Grim, to blame myself for the current situation, yet the knowledge that he was ready to do anything to get into this school made it hard for me to. This was probably going to happen no matter what I did. Still, I wish I knew _why_ he was so determined. _Ow-!_ I hissed when the man placed my hands in his own, gritting my teeth.

“That rat got you good.” He commented. Then he did something that surprised me; he raised the sleeve of his robe up to his mouth and… tore it. His fangs ripped off a long strand of the fabric easily, and it took everything I had to not whimper when he wrapped the cloth around my palm, making sure it was on there tightly so as to put pressure. He repeated the action for my other hand, too, and grinned a little when he saw my face. “That’s why you don’t go pissin’ off monsters. I can’t believe you actually had the guts to try and take him on. Are you stupid?”

Flustered and still reeling from how much it hurt to have the cloth brushing against my wounds, I bit down on my trembling bottom lip. I glanced up at him and then away at the floor, finding it hard to meet his emerald gaze. “I-I didn’t want- he just…” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, shaking a little. I could feel the tears trying to form. “He made me mad.”

From behind everyone was struggling to catch Grim, and Headmaster Crowley was absolutely furious. “The school is going to be a sea flames if this keeps up!”

“Um,” Growing only more upset the longer I listened to everyone and focused on the chaos, I concentrated solely on the person in front of me. I felt bad that he ruined his fancy robe to help me, but I was grateful for it. Even though he was incredibly intimidating and a bit scary, he was also nice. I flashed him a weak smile, “Th-Thank you.”

He really had no reason to be so nice to me. Not when I caused so much trouble. Even though Grim could have gone after anyone else for their uniform, he had chosen me as his target since it was my coffin he had opened. It was annoying and I really wanted to hit the cat again, but… that would only create more problems than what we already had.

“All it’ll do is staunch the blood flow.” He scoffed, turning away to stare at the chaos.

Okaaay, that much was obvious. Anyone could have figured that out. I frowned and tilted my head at him, noting that something about him almost seemed… tired. It was probably just the stress messing with me, so I was most likely wrong about this, but the way he spoke made it seem like _talking_ was an effort. Was he okay?

I leaned over, trying to get a better view of his face. The man blinked, an eyebrow raising as his eyes met mine. Gods, they really were so intense. He was actually sort of… pretty. In a rugged kind of way. “What?” He demanded. “Gonna complain about it?”

My eyebrows furrowed. “No? I was just gonna say “thank you” again.”

“Will somebody _please_ catch that raccoon dog!?” Headmaster Crowley’s voice prevented me from saying anything else. The masked man was frustrated, lashing his whip at Grim and only becoming more aggravated when the cat managed to avoid him. The stranger and I both watched as this occurred, and then there was the sound of heels clacking against the ground. One of the taller important-looking people was walking over to us. “Hurry!”

He moved with a certain grace about him- not once stumbling with his steps. His heels were practically stilettos and yet his gait was elegant and refined. Strands of pale blond hair could be seen poking out from beneath his hood, and he placed his hands on his hips- leaning down and offering a coy smile. “Leona~ don’t you think you should catch that little beast for us?”

What? Oh my gods. My attention went to the gruff man beside me, alarmed. I would never have suspected him to have such a pretty sounding name. I liked it. It was also… different.

“You’re good at hunting aren’t you?” The elegant man continued, humming. His face was covered in make-up, lips practically gleaming with color. The dark eyeshadow and liner around his eyes really made the lilac irises pop. “Or is that little girl your new prey~? Are you going to feast on her flesh and blood? I can only imagine how much of a snack a mere _human_ must look to the likes of you. In the midst of the ceremony, too- truly disgraceful.”

...Okay, hold on, back up. _What?_ I don’t even know where to begin dissecting that. Was he really insinuating that Leona would eat humans? He’s humanoid enough himself- so that would be cannibalism! Right? No way. Sure he was a little scary, but there was no way he would murder and eat someone. He was nice. Kind of.

Wait, why am I so worried over this? It was just a dream. A… very vivid, disturbingly painful dream. Of all the imagination and creativity I had, I don’t know if I could have come up with this myself. Which meant…

No. I shouldn’t even be considering it.

But… if this was reality… then I put all these people in danger. It _was_ mewho Grim was targeting, so I should do something to fix this. What though? I had no strength and magic either; if what the mirror said was anything to go by. My legs were still refusing to move and my lungs still burned. I doubted I could walk on my own even if I wanted to, despite how determined I would be to remain standing. I… have no way to help.

I’m useless.

“Catch the thing yourself.” Leona glared, emerald eyes darkening. “I only interfered because that _rat_ kept attacking her. You can’t call yourself a man if you’re just going to watch a girl get hurt.”

Oh. Oh wow. That was both really sweet and insulting at the same time. He was totally calling this dude out for being a jerk who just stood on the sidelines watching while I got mauled by Grim. Holy frick. But wait- if he was so concerned with chivalry or whatever, then why didn’t he help me out sooner? I have several questions now.

He mentioned earlier how I had “guts” for messing with the gremlin cat. Did he find amusement in that or something? Jeez. Sir, you and I are going to have to have a talk.

“Oooh~ such a gentleman.” The person teased. “Here I thought you were just a slob with no respect for others. If only you could put that much care into your appearance.”

Leona’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Hah? What does that matter-”

He was never able to finish. “Please leave this to me, Headmaster Crowley!” A person declared, raising a fist up in the air. A bright smile was plastered on his face, his blue eyes directed towards the headmaster. “I’m sure the others couldn’t stomach harming such an adorable little creature, so I will handle it myself!”

 _“That’s Azul for you,”_ I heard. It took a minute for me to realize it was coming from this floating blue screen, with an image of a megaphone on it, the words “audio only” written in bold letters across it. I jumped, instinctively reaching out to grab onto Leona’s coat and barely stopping myself in time. The screen floating was just as weird as the coffins. The voice continued, _“He’s always trying to earn himself brownie points.”_

The red-eyed boy from before was still shouting, running around the room while avoiding Grim, smacking his own rear. “Can someone please help!? The fire is burning my butt!”

The Headmaster let out a loud groan, placing his left hand on a hip while resting the right on his forehead. “Is anyone listening to me!?”

This is such a mess… I feel awful. Grim wanted the uniform, so maybe if I gave him the robe he’ll calm down? Then again, I don’t see why he’d want it so bad when it wouldn’t even fit him. What if I use the robe to lure him in and then wrap it around him, caging him? Like when I was little and my brother would put me in a pillow case and spin me around- or when he’d roll me into a blanket like a cocoon and slide me down the stairs. That would have to work.

I looked at my palms for a moment, pain flickering onto my expression as I saw how much blood was soaking through the fancy cloth. My lungs hated me right now and so did the rest of my body, but… I have to take responsibility for this. I antagonized Grim more than he already was. The blond haired man blinked when he saw me start to move and Leona frowned, watching as I tried to stand.

“Oi, what are you doing?”

Leona pushed himself onto his feet and grabbed my arm when I almost fell back down. I flinched. “H-he wants… the uniform. If… If I say he can have it, he sh… should stop and…”

“...Then we can catch him.” A mischievous grin curled onto his face. His eyes flickered over to something behind me. “Not a bad plan. I’d say Azul has it covered though.”

I blinked in confusion and looked over my shoulder, watching as the blue-eyed man approached the shortest person of the important-looking group. The majority of the people had stopped running around, instead huddling together away from the danger, while others were still freaking out and trying to put out the fires. The red-eyed boy especially. “Care to help me, Riddle?” Azul asked, smiling. “The raccoon dog certainly has some moxie.”

“I can’t overlook those who break rules.” The one called Riddle stated, frowning as he placed a hand on his hip. “Let’s hurry and get this over with.”

Oh. I worried my bottom lip. “I-I guess so…”

I really wanted to help. More flames poured out of Grim’s mouth, the cat letting out a furious roar. Leona shoved his arm out and tugged me back out of the way, pulling me to him while the blond sighed and shook his head. “This heat is going to make my hair friz…” The stranger said. Leona kept his arm wrapped around my front, hand grasping my shoulder firmly. I was frozen, unused to such contact and also a little overwhelmed by all the danger.

It was fine until I started to ponder if this was actually reality, so now that it’s sinking in…

I’m really glad at least one person is being so nice.

“I’ve said it _countless times_ already; I’m not a raccoon dog!” Grim shrieked. “The one who will become the greatest magician ever is _me_ \- Grim the Great!”

“H-He’s really mad…”

Leona said nothing. Azul and Riddle chased Grim all throughout the area, pulling out some kind of wands and shooting spells at him, and when they got a little too close the three of us that were hiding in this corner of the room moved closer to the mirror, which is where Headmaster Crowley was still standing. He was mumbling something irritably, glaring in the direction Grim was. He snapped his fingers, going about the room and magically putting out several of the fires that had been forming.

By this point I was completely hiding behind Leona, poking my head out and watching the great chase occur. Riddle shouted something I didn’t quite catch at Grim, and then snapped, “You’ve got some nerve! How dare you come in here!? Cats are against the rules!”

Grim laughed. “Nyaha~! You can’t catch me!”

“Why you~! Azul! You’re messing around too much! Take this seriously!”

The two ended up chasing Grim out of the room. Glancing nervously at the headmaster when the doors slammed shut, I moved closer to Leona in fear that the masked man might start yelling at me. In a situation like this it would be easy to place all the blame on me- and everyone always liked to cast the blame on someone other than themselves when something went wrong. If Headmaster Crowley was angry and he wanted to take that anger out on someone, it wouldn’t surprise me if he chose me. I just…

I just don’t handle getting yelled at very well.

So… I was hoping that wouldn’t actually come to pass. Ignoring the pain exploding throughout my nerves, I pinched Leona’s robe with my thumb and forefinger, needing _some_ sort of comfort. This situation was insane. Complete madness. If my older sister was here with me I would cling to her instead, perhaps even more so, but this stranger was all I had to hide behind. I was alone in this place.

And Headmaster Crowley… was starting to scare me just as much as the rest of this place. At least he finished putting out the fires. During the time that Azul and Riddle were off chasing Grim, the panicking students started to calm down- although their whispering hadn’t ceased. They were still talking about the crazed monster and the magicless girl that had been summoned. About how a dorm leader was actually helping her.

Dorm leader…? Is that who Leona is? The dorm leader of one of the school houses? I looked up at him curiously, becoming more and more intrigued. I had no idea what was going to happen after the little cat gremlin got caught, but maybe I could be friends with Leona? If I wound up stuck in this place, that is.

Suddenly the doors slammed open. Azul and Riddle came marching in with Grim, the cat dangling from the blue-eyed man’s arms. Something weird was wrapped around Grim’s neck overtop his bow, shaped almost like a heart. Azul looked quite pleased with the outcome of the capture, and as they approached he purred, “Ahhh, Riddle’s _unique magic_ is really something, isn’t? Able to seal any magic with your own… I want it. Not on me, of course.”

He added the last bit when he saw Riddle turn to him with a frown.

“Miss Quince!” I ducked my head back into hiding upon reflex, hearing the headmaster shout my name. It took all the willpower I had to try and step out from behind Leona so I could face the angry man before us. Headmaster Crowley grabbed Grim from Azul, holding the cat up for me to see. “This is _your_ familiar, is it not? Do something about this!”

My grip tightened slightly on Leona’s robe and he glanced down at me, eyes narrowing. Feeling my legs start to tremble, I tried to shut down my emotions so I could speak. Granted, that was if he would even let me. “He’s not-”

“You should be disciplining him properly! Look at all the havoc he caused!”

“Grim isn’t-”

“You should know better than to-”

“But-”

“No “buts”!” He snapped. I recoiled, flinching away and nearly choking up when he continued to raise his voice. “We’ve had this conversation before. A familiar’s behavior is the responsibility of their master. Yet you have forgone all of it! Miss Quince, you-”

“Oi, teach.” Leona spoke up. One of his eyebrows were twitching, a frown heavy on his face. Headmaster Crowley paused, looking at the student in surprise. “Let the girl speak.”

The masked man stared and sighed, folding his arms over his chest. He glared down at me. “Very well. State your piece, Miss Quince.”

What? Was he actually letting me- oh frick, okay. I can actually talk then. Wow. Um, I don’t know how to react to that. I’ve never wanted to hug a stranger so bad in my life before. Inhaling shakily, I looked up at Headmaster Crowley, hoping that he would actually listen to me. Last time I tried to explain things he kept cutting me off and twisted whatever I _did_ manage to get out to suit what he wanted to believe. He probably wouldn’t even trust a single word I said. Still, I had to give it a shot…

“A-As I’ve been _trying_ to say… Grim isn’t my familiar.”

“Eh?” His glowing eyes became pinpricks. “He isn’t? Then… why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

This man, I swear. Such a pain. I removed one hand from Leona’s robe and waved it through the air, exasperated. “You wouldn’t let me!”

“I… Is that right?” Headmaster Crowley was stunned. He cleared his throat, “W-Well then, we should get this creature out of the school.” He held Grim up, staring him down with cold eyes. “You’re lucky you won’t be turned into a stew. Reason being? Because I am kind. Now come.” HeadMaster Crowley carried the cat out of the doors, disappearing for several minutes.

As they left through the doors I could hear Grim wailing, talking about how he was definitely going to become the greatest magician ever and that nothing was going to stop him. But then his cries were silenced, too far away for anyone to hear. My tense shoulders relaxed and I slumped over, exhausted and still very much in pain.

“Th-That was intense…”

“Hmph. To you.” Leona commented. He didn’t make much of an expression, hard as ever to read, but he did look down at me. “You’re clinging pretty tight. Are your wounds not bothering you?”

What? Oh frick! I hurriedly released him, taking several steps back and holding my hands close to my chest. “S-Sorry! I-I mean, yeah, but-” Frick, frackity, frick frack, crud! What do I say? What do I do? The headmaster is gone and now everyone was staring again. How should I even answer his question? “I-It’ll be fine, right? I’m… mostly… just dizzy, so…”

I flashed a weak smile.

“I’m just kinda ignoring it. So, uh… yeah. Um.” I glanced around nervously. Some of the important looking people from before were walking over. “Th-This is an… all boys school?”

“Yeah. Girls aren’t supposed to be here.” Leona folded his arms across his chest. It really bothered me seeing his sleeves torn up like that. A smooth voice spoke from behind me and I jumped, whirling around to see the lilac-eyed blond man from before.

“Truly an interesting turn of events.” Oh gods, I’m surrounded. All the important people had formed a circle around me and the mirror, leaving me trapped. One step after another I moved back to my previous position, stumbling to hide next to Leona as I grew overwhelmed. I did not like social gatherings; crowds freaked me out and being cornered only made my anxiety worse. “Your appearance could use quite a bit of work, however! Your hair is so messy; it's long overdue for a trim. And your skin- do you even take care of it?”

“Uh, what? I-I mean, I try? Kind of. You know, to... get rid of acne and stuff." 

“Hmph. Such a lazy potato you are. You should be putting more effort into your appearance, or at the very least take better care of your health. To think the carriage could make such a mistake as great as this…”

 _“Ahaha…”_ The audio-only screen person chuckled quietly. “ _Of course Vil is the one to act like that… even though it’s the first female to ever be brought here.”_

“The fire on my butt is finally out!” The red-eyed boy exclaimed, walking up and patting out the smoky remains of his robe. “Phew! That was rough. Hey, hey- what was your name again? Why are you hiding behind Leona? Come on, chat with us! I’m Kalim! Eleanor, right?”

“...Eleanora.” I awkwardly corrected. Leona was starting to look annoyed.

“Can you all _back off?_ Give her some space.”

Some of the people from one of the many groups started whispering, talking about what a great and amazing dorm leader Leona was- protecting me, a female, despite my being a herbivore.

The frick did that even mean? I remembered what Vil said earlier, how he hinted that Leona ate people. I still wasn’t sure if that was true, but I was starting to think he definitely leaned more towards the carnivorous side of the food triangle.

“You’re too close.” He growled.

“Now, now,” Azul purred, bringing a hand to his chin, “you’re quite protective all of a sudden. You’re not going to eat her, are you?”

Okay. Yeah. That’s the second person who has made that joke today. He’s definitely a cannibal. I should probably sneak away from him at some point. “I might eat _you_ if you keep this up.” A nasty grin curled onto his lips. “I’ve always been curious as to what raw octopus would taste like. Wanna give me a taste?”

Azul’s eyes flashed dangerously and he stepped away, glaring at the man.

Wait, what? Octopus? Where? Azul? But then again… I stared blankly, looking up at Leona. I had seen it earlier; his eyes, though a beautifully bright emerald, weren’t like most. His pupils were slits, only making him more intimidating with his six foot tall stature. And then there was Azul...

He had pale skin and a beauty mark near his lips, and I could just barely make out silver hair falling into his face. He stood at about five foot seven and from what I could tell he was also really pretty. My eyebrows furrowed as I thought about the possibilities. If Leona could be a carnivore of some kind, with fangs and cat eyes, then why couldn’t other people be inhuman? Headmaster Crowley had freaking shark teeth, after all. But…

“...You don’t look like an octopus.” Azul blinked. He then pushed his glasses up onto his nose, offering a polite smile.

“Yes, well, there are circumstances for that. I have given myself legs to walk on land. How else am I to attend classes here?”

“Oh.” That sounded… also vaguely familiar. It hurt trying to recall. My memory- it felt like there was something missing. Something important I should know. So many warning bells were going off, but I couldn’t properly understand or react to them because of it. I offered a small grin, deciding that I should just try to make the best of this situation while I still could. “That’s cool! I didn’t know you could do that.”

Azul chuckled.

“Hey, hey,” Kalim complained, “this isn’t fair! You’re hogging her, Leona!”

“This is mind boggling,” Riddle muttered, bringing a hand up to his head, “and yet there is not a single rule stating that the carriage could not bring a female to this school… even though Night Raven College is meant to be all boys. Not even the rules set for Heartslabyul have anything to go against her being here…”

There are way too many names and way too many people. Leona glanced at me from over his shoulder. “Will you be fine on your own?” I jolted, looking up at him. Before I could answer the doors opened and the Headmaster waltzed back in, clapping his hands together as if to say “good riddance” to Grim. I almost felt bad for the cat, but then again he did tear up my hands.

Moving them seriously hurt…

If I can’t draw anymore because of him, I’m gonna have to kick him out a window.

“Alright, everyone!” Headmaster Crowley exclaimed, catching everyone’s attention. “There was a bit of trouble along the way, but this brings the entrance ceremony to a close! Dormitory leaders, please escort the new students to their dormitories. Ah- wait, now that I think about it…” He glanced around the room. “The Dorm Leader for Diasomnia, Mr. Draconia, isn’t around.”

Leona sighed. “That’s no different from usual, isn’t it? He never shows up.”

“What?” Kalim blinked, red eyes wide. “Did no one tell him about the ceremony?”

Oh jeez. Vil shot Kalim a look, unimpressed with his reaction. “If you’re going to complain, you should invite him yourself.”

The boy made a face, folding his arms over his chest. “But I don’t really know him all that well…” 

More whispering broke out in the room from the crowds of students. I felt a little relieved knowing it wasn’t about me this time, but I couldn’t help but feel for the guy who had been forgotten. If I was understanding this all correctly, that person never receives invitations- even to events as important as this one.

“By Draconia…” A person murmured. “D-Do they mean _that_ Malleus Draconia?”

Ah. That was one heck of a name. “Malleus…?”

“Does he actually go to this school?” Another panicked. “Scary…”

A deep voice spoke up, startling me as I hadn’t even noticed his presence. From under the hood I could make out apple red eyes and dark hair, his face so delicate it almost didn’t match with his voice at all. “I knew it.” He frowned, crossing his arms. “I was hoping Malleus would be here, but it seems the invitation “never arrived” again.”

I made a face at that, leaning my head back and cringing. “Oh jeez. H-How do you keep forgetting to invite the same person?”

Azul shook his head, approaching the stranger and pressing a hand to his chest. “My deepest apologies! I promise, we didn’t intend to exclude him.” Riddle nodded in agreement.

“He has this aura that makes it hard to approach…”

“It’s fine.” The stranger sighed. He looked up, turning the crowd behind him. “Members of the Diasomnia Dormitory can follow me! If it pleases you...”

“Yes.” Azul spoke again, turning to his own crowd of students. “Octavinelle- follow me!”

“Heartslabyul!” Riddle shouted.

Leona glanced at the headmaster with a scowl and patted my shoulder, telling me to, “Stay with Crowley”, and then turned away- leaving me with the masked man as he disappeared out the room with the rest of “Savanaclaw”. I stood there awkwardly, wondering what was going to happen now. I still haven’t woken up yet, so the idea of this being reality was just growing stronger, leaving my stomach to twist and churn grossly.

“Today did not go as planned.” Headmaster Crowley sighed. “Oh, yes- your wounds. You have everything necessary to take care of them at home, do you not?”

Oh. Oh, frick- maybe I _am_ about to wake up. Please let this just be a dream. “I-I guess so, yeah. Why?”

“Miss Quince, I am terribly sorry about all this, but we must have you leave.” Ah, knew it. Thank goodness. Headmaster Crowley looked at me with a sympathetic frown. “Those without the talent for magic cannot be allowed to attend school here. But there is no need to worry!” He settled his hands on my shoulders, smiling brightly and showing off those sharp teeth again. “The Mirror of Darkness will send you back from whence you came!”

He guided me over to the closest coffin. Though a little hesitant, I awkwardly climbed in and laid down. I almost freaked when he closed the lid, encasing me in black once more. I held my bloodied hands gingerly, thumbs brushing the back of my knuckles.

“Stay inside the Gate and picture your home clearly in your mind…”

Home… yes. I want to go home. I want to wake up from this dream. I want to find myself curled up in bed, burrowed underneath my many blankets. Waiting for the next installment of my favorite video game series, for the next episode of my favorite animes, for the next manga volumes, and… waiting for the next time I would get to see my siblings again. I would rather be having another attack at work than be put through anymore insanity here.

“Oh, Mirror of Darkness! Guide this child back to where she belongs~!”

I wasn’t sure what was supposed to happen. Recalling the earlier parts of my dream I wondered if there should be green flames or something, but nothing of the sort occured. Instead all I could hear was the Headmaster clearing his throat.

“One more time… Oh, Mirror of Darkness! Guide this-”

_“This young maid cannot get back.”_

“Eh?” Please no. Tell me it isn’t so. “What did you just say?”

_“There is no such place as this; here in Twisted Wonderland her home simply doth not exist. I cannot send her back.”_

Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I tried to ignore the wheezing in my chest and shifted, kicking at the coffin lid to try and push it away. “This is unbelievable…!” I heard footsteps, the sound of a key turning in a lock, and then Headmaster Crowley was there- pushing the door away and allowing me to sit up. He eyed me for a moment. “Then again, the unbelievable is right in front of me…”

“S-Sorry.” I apologized, grimacing when pain shot through my hands. I was doing my best not to move them too much, but it was a little difficult. I constantly spoke with my hands and fiddled with them when nervous, so… you could say it was a challenge.

“This is the first time something like this has happened since I’ve become headmaster of this school,” The man man told me, frowning deeply, “so I’m not sure what exactly should be… ah! Where exactly is it you’re from?”

After a moment of hesitation, I told him.

“America…? Hmm.” He brought a hand up to his chin. “I’ve never heard of such a place. I have a general grasp of where _all_ my students hail from and yet… this is the first time such a name has been spoken. Once we get your wounds patched up, let’s do some research in the library. Sounds good, yes?”

Not knowing what else to say, I gave an awkward nod. He stood and I followed, carefully stepping out of the coffin. I’m amazed my body was even functioning considering all it had been put through. Everything ached and burned. I don’t even think I was able to use my daily medicine this morning before I was whisked away to this place. Granted that in itself was a blur. By all means I should be half-dead on the floor.

Maybe that was a sign that this truly was a dream? Just… maybe.

Seeing me stagger a pair of hands curled around my fingers, keeping me steady and guiding me through the halls. This all really felt so real…

I’m scared. I want to go home.

When we entered the infirmary Headmaster Crowley started to talk again, rambling a little. “The school nurse isn’t here today seeing as it was opening ceremony, but the supplies are. As such, because I am a graciously kind headmaster, I will tend to you in their place!” He forced me to sit down on one of the infirmary beds. Uncomfortable with the situation, I set my hands nervously on my lap as he fumbled about the room muttering to himself. “Let’s see… medicine… oh! Needle and thread, perfect.”

For all the magic they possessed, were healing spells not a thing? Oh dear. “D-Do I really need stitches?”

“Do you want to be able to use your hands again?” He challenged, walking over with several bottles of antiseptic, cloth, and bandages. “Come. Hold out your hands. This will only hurt a bit, but we must clean the bits first. That foul raccoon dog tore deep into your flesh.”

I knew he was lying about how much it was going to hurt and I still wasn’t prepared for what was going to happen after he removed the cloth Leona had wrapped around my palms. I grit my teeth and squeezed my eyes shut, fully bracing for the pain that was sure to come, but it wasn’t enough. I almost headbutted the poor man as I muffled a scream, jaw clenched so tight it hurt. I could physically _feel_ the bubbles as the medicine did its job, seeping down into my very bones. Headmaster Crowley got to work wiping up stray blood with the clean cloth he had brought, the man watching in silence as I silenced my tears, breathing heavily.

“You’re a strong one, aren’t you? Didn’t seem that way earlier.” A grin played on his purple lips, the man pulling a string of wire-y thread through a needle. “That’s almost impressive, seeing as you’re far from home. Don't faint on me now, little one.”

I-I’m not… gonna…

More sounds were forcibly muffled, and before long my forehead was resting on the masked man’s shoulder as the dizziness became too much for me to handle, my skull absolutely _throbbing_. It felt like someone had taken my head and rammed into a brick wall repeatedly. But while tears did fall, not once did I actually allow myself to start sobbing. I couldn’t.

When Headmaster Crowley was finished he brought my hands up and bit off the extra thread with his ridiculously sharp teeth. Once more gently dabbing away any excess blood, he wrapped fresh bandages around my palms and fingers, pulling away and humming to himself.

“Yes! A job well done, indeed! Fufu~ I am truly kind. How are you feeling, Miss Quince?” He looked down at me, noting that I hadn’t moved once since my head fell onto his shoulder. “Are you still awake?”

A tired nod. “Mmhm…”

“Good, good.” He carefully pulled himself away and stood, patting me on the head. “I must put these away and leave a note for the nurse, lest I get a complaint about missing supplies… afterwards we’ll head out.”

“Th… Thank you…”

Another stare. His glowing yellow eyes flickered and then he turned away, marching up to the cabinets and setting everything in order. I stared blankly at my bandaged hands, wondering if this was my new reality. I felt so cold and warm, so dizzy and tired. I needed a nap.

A nice long one, with a breathing treatment right before. I’m on the verge of passing out.

After a minute passed I was being coerced into standing, hands curling around my shoulders as if the person knew it was the only way to keep me upright. We left the infirmary without a word said, Headmaster Crowley being strangely quiet. When we arrived in the library, I was actually rather surprised to find myself recognizing it. This was the place… where I had first met him. Where he had saved me from Grim.

“Now, you sit at one of those tables while I collect some books.” He ordered. I didn’t argue, obediently doing as told and making a place in one of the many chairs. I think I must have zoned out or actually fell asleep, because the next thing I knew there was a tall stack of books in front of me. Headmaster Crowley ordered me to start helping him search through them. I did so, a little stunned I could actually read this language. Ten minutes later, he spoke. “There really isn’t anything…”

Hm? Oh. Right. Wait- that’s a bad thing, isn’t it? My groggy mind struggled to catch up. Headmaster Crowley leaned against the table, folding his arms over his chest after setting the last book down. Oh no...

“Not only the world map, but even the very _name_ of the place you come from… it’s nowhere in history. Are you truly from where you say?” He fixed me with a stern look, lips tilting down in a deep frown. “You aren’t lying to me, are you…? Even after how kind I’ve been…? Eh? No?” He saw the way I shook my head, brown orbs meeting his own bright yellow. “Hmm. Then… looking at all this…”

He stood, turning away and eying all the many books and scrolls he had me help him look through.

“It could be possible that… you might have been brought here from another planet?” He placed his hands on his hips, looking at me with big yellow orbs. “Maybe even another world!”

“So…” I blinked, befuddled by this conclusion yet oddly unable to refute it. “I’m an alien?”

“What did you have on you when you arrived here?” He inquired. I paused, thinking about it, and slowly made myself stand, patting down the pockets of the fancy ceremonial robe I was wearing. “Anything? A form of identification- say, a license to drive a magic car or a name on a shoe…? Nothing?”

I couldn’t feel anything. Not the usual cellphone bulge or the paper hems that I ripped off after finishing a drawing, or even the herbal cough drops I ate. “N-No…” I looked up at him, horror slowly dawning on my face. I always kept my wallet in my work lunchbox since it was pretty big, as that had my license and I.D in it- and I only ever really drove to work. My rescue inhaler was always in my apron, too, as well as the many band-aids I kept on person. “I-I don’t…”

This is bad. Really bad. I could feel my eyes start to sting again as I looked up at him, alarmed. I figured I didn’t have them on me before, but this confirmed it.

“I-I don’t… I don’t have anything. Not even my inhalers.”

“Inhalers?” He echoed, confused. “What do you mean?”

Okay, stay calm. Don’t panic. Panicking will only make things worse. I got lucky this far, but once tomorrow hits I’ll end up being half-dead on the floor slowly suffocating. “I-I have… really bad lungs. Um,” I blinked fiercely, breaths a bit shaky, “I-I can’t function very well without… without my medicine? I-I don’t even know how I lasted this long, honestly, but…”

Frick. I pressed the back of my arm to my mouth, trying not to cry.

“I-I can’t breathe too well without them. I have to wear a mask when I go outside, too, sometimes, because of how bad the air quality is. It’s- It sucks, but, um, it’s a thing, so...”

“I see.” Headmaster Crowley brought a hand up to his chin, deep in thought. “This is troublesome. I can’t just let someone without magic stay in this school, but I can’t just toss a young penniless girl out on the streets without any form of communication either. As headmaster I must take responsibility for what the school has done… and it would not be very _kind_ of me to leave someone in your condition to wither away, yes? Your parents must be very worried.”

I gazed up at him through spotted vision, waiting for the doubles to fade back into one. His eyes lit up and he grinned at me, pleased with himself. He snapped his fingers, unfolding his arms and placed a hand on his hip.

“I know! There is an unused building on campus. It was once used as a dormitory in the past, so once cleaned up a little I’m sure you can at the very least sleep there. I will let you stay in that building for the time being! During that time, I will search for a way to get you home.” He laughed, placing a hand against his chest. “My kindness is truly limitless! I am a _model_ for all educators! And to further show my kindness, I will even clean a bedroom for you! You are in no such condition to move after all, so you shall rest in the infirmary until I am done. Understood?”

I… I have no words. It took a few long seconds before I could bring myself to speak. “Y-Yes, sir. Thank… you.”

He beamed. Moving slowly, I followed behind him until we reached the infirmary- where he then just… disappeared. There was no warning, he just vanished. I couldn’t even see him in the hallway. Deeply confused, but deciding that it was better to not question it, I wandered over to a bed and collapsed, closing my eyes. As I focused on my breathing… the world around me faded away as I drifted into sleep.

In that sleep I found myself sitting still within a dream, abandoned in the middle of nowhere. Below me was the same black river as before, the smell absolutely _putrid_ and reaching deep into my senses. I recognized it at once as ink, though I understood little as to why it was there. Where was it all coming from? The thorns from before were gone and the mirror was nowhere to be seen, and yet…

I lifted my hands out from the puddle, watching as the liquid dripped between my fingers, staining my skin black. A chill ran down my spine then and I shivered. It almost felt like someone was watching me. Yet when I looked around… there was no one? Hmm. I let out a sigh and fell back, collapsing tiredly against the ink. What is this place? Where is it?

What am I even doing here? It’s so dark and cold. I don’t like it.

_“I want to go outside, Mama…”_

Ack! A voice! I sat up abruptly, alarmed. Who said that?

_“I want to play with my friends.”_

I stood and waved my arms, stumbling a little as I tried to call out to whoever was talking. It sounded like a small child. I could hear the sound of feet walking against wet ink. Turning around I could just barely make out a silhouette- dancing in the corners of my vision, vanishing just as they were about to come into view. The child sounded so heartbroken.

_“Haven’t I studied enough for today? What more do you want me to do? How much harder do I have to work until you’re happy? Until I can play? Until I can have just one little sweet to eat for my birthday? Why isn’t anything I do good enough for you?”_

There! I whirled around, stepping forward when the figure finally came into sight. They were so far away I could only make out their shape, but they existed. It was definitely a small child. When I attempted to approach the stranger something strange happened- blots of ink shot up from the ground and took shape as tendrils, hardening into vines and nearly knocking me over as a result. “Whoa!”

The child was wandering around the endless river, almost seeming to start sinking into its depths. I thrashed against the thorny vines, barely managing to free a leg. Using that momentary bit of freedom I took another step, fighting against the restraints to try and reach a hand out towards the child, calling out to them.

“Hey! H-Hey, can you hear me!?”

They were sinking deeper. If it kept up the ink was going to pull them in and drown them. _“Mama… am I a mistake?”_ Oh gods. I don’t know who their mother is but she and I are going to have to have to throw some hands later, holy frick. Making a child question their worth is not how you parent.

I clicked my tongue and coughed, kicking at the remaining vines with my foot, forcibly freeing my other leg. Staggering forward I headed towards the child and held my hand out again. “You’re not! You’re not a mistake!” More vines started to rise up and I cried out when they latched around my arms, dragging me back and forcing me down to my knees. I watched in horror as the small child took another step, the ink black liquid rising up- swallowing them whole. “Nooo!”

The thorny vines spread farther up my body, twisting around my waist, cutting into my flesh, and every drop of blood against the ink created red flowers. The pain in my chest worsened as I pulled against the vines, dragging them through the inky river as I forced my way to where the child had fallen. That pain spread from my chest into my throat, like tiny little shards of glass pricking me from inside. I coughed and wheezed, choking as it became harder and harder to breathe.

This child…! I can’t just let them drown!

I can’t really swim myself, but… it was better to try than just give up. They had such a long life ahead of them. They deserved better than this. They weren’t a mistake or a failure, or anything else their mother made them think they were. I have to let them know that! I have to get them out of this place.

“I-I’ve got you!” My voice was strangled for some reason, the feeling in my throat worsening with each word spoken, and the thorny vines around my wrists finally snapped. My right hand plunged into the ink black river, fighting against the pressure trying to keep me out, and then the thorns rose up- caging me and dragging me below. The pain became worse and I started to cough, the needle sharp pains in my throat near unbearable.

I could hardly see anything in this blackness. The ink was thick and dark, and I fell so slowly through it.

_“Mama…”_

But the child was there. They were in front of me, hands pressed to their face as they sobbed, sitting on some kind of bench.

_“Mama, why won’t you listen? Do my words not matter?”_

Just a little closer. Please. I can almost reach you. Let me take you away from this place- to somewhere safe. Out of this toxic darkness.

Suddenly the pain became too much. My fingers coiled around my neck and I choked. Something was very wrong. The closer I got to the child the worse the pain became, and I found myself completely hunched over in this river of ink, spitting and gasping as I tried to rid whatever was messing with me. I accidentally inhaled some of the ink in the process, which only made it worse, but after some struggle I finally managed to spit out at least _part_ of whatever was stuck in my throat.

And what floated before me… was a white rose petal covered in blood.

My eyes squeezed shut, a strange sensation that wasn’t quite horror more as it was sheer confusion flowing through me, and as I continued to cough I could feel it reaching up through my throat into my mouth. A rose poking out from between my lips, several more budding from its stems, its thorns stabbed me from inside. Though it was hard to see with my blurry vision, I looked up. The child was colored in white and red, just like the roses.

I tried to speak to the child once more, raising a hand as much as my tired body would let me, but no words came out. I was going to suffocate, left to drown in petals and blood and ink. And this child… was going to continue crying. There really was no saving them, was there? I can’t reach them at all.

I don’t even who they are.

The dream fell apart then, my eyes sliding shut as I gave in to the call of sleep…

Only for them to open wide moments after as I was greeted with reality, sitting up and coiling my hands around my throat- pain flaring through the bite marks and making me cry out in response. A hiss escaped through my gritted teeth and I coughed, feeling extremely out of breath. Sweat beaded down the sides of my face as I looked around, trying to figure out where I was as I didn’t instantly recognize my surroundings.

What had happened…? Where am I?

I remember… oh. Oh no. I’m still here- in Night Raven College. I blinked and inhaled deeply, resisting the urge to rub at my chest to try and soothe any aches. My lungs were hurting like crazy. Even though I had just been asleep, it really didn’t feel like I got any rest at all. I felt sore.

Maybe it was because of all that running I did earlier…

Just what on earth had been I dreaming about, anyway? I couldn’t quite remember. It felt like it was important. I guess it was confirmation that this was reality, though. But… frick, man, this sucked. I want to go home. I’m screwed if I stay here. A sudden knock had me jolting and I looked up in time to see Headmaster Crowley walk in, appearing mighty pleased with himself.

More proof. More proof that this place actually existed. If it wasn’t for everything else today making me so distraught, then I probably would be feeling worse than what I was. My heart has already long-since jumped down and buried itself in my stomach. “It is done!” Headmaster Crowley exclaimed. “Come, little one. I’ve even prepared a mask for you to wear since your sickly human lungs might not withstand the dust. Oho~ truly, I am the most gracious. Wouldn’t you agree?”

He grinned at me. A weak smile spread across my face and I gave a small nod, beaming at him as brightly as I could despite my exhausted state. “Y-Yeah. You’re… You’re the kindest person… I’ve ever known. Th-Thank you, Mr. Crowley, sir.”

“Ohoho! Flattery will get you nowhere, but I appreciate your understanding of my graciousness. Come, let us go. Despite its current standing, there is a bit of charm to the dorm, I assure you!” 


	3. Ramshackle Dorm

Considering how conveniently close the dorm was to the school, I found myself questioning why it was abandoned. It couldn’t be because of travel time, so why…? Did they just build new dorms and they ended up being more modernly useful, which in turn led to this one being unused? I worried my bottom lip in thought, ignoring the strange taste that rested on my tongue. It was only when we actually arrived to the crickety old gate of the dorm that I realized-

_This is a really bad idea._

There was no way it wasn’t haunted. All sorts of dead trees surrounded the area, surrounded by overgrown weeds and rocks that had made themselves home here. There was a little old-fashioned well nearby, but even that was covered in cobwebs.

 _Ewww._ I hated spiders- no, all bugs with a passion! I couldn’t stand them. They were disgusting. And as we walked up the dusty old stair-ridden path to the front entrance of the dorm, I could only count out _more_ of the little critters. I pulled on the plague mask (it had a respirator, which was what I needed, but seriously Crowley? At least it covered only the lower half of my face) and I tried not to walk too close to Headmaster Crowley, attempting to hide my childish irrational fear of some kind of murderer running out from trees.

Or… worse, considering there were some rocks that looked suspiciously like gravestones.

_I want to go home._

My hands were burning, my throat was sore, my lungs were aching, and I was completely drained and exhausted. This was officially the worst day of my life. “Th-This place… certainly _is_ charming, huh?”

“Isn’t it~?” Headmaster Crowley sang, grinning ear-to-ear, opening the door. Even with the mask on I could feel a sneeze trying to form, building up just from the _sight_ of how much dust and cobwebs there were. Pardon my language, but holy shit! This was insane. “Follow me, please.”

He guided me through the dusty hallway into an even more dilapidated lounge room. Furniture- chairs, tables, even portraits- were all tipped over or out of place, and there were so many spider webs I dared say you could probably weave them into actual thread to make clothes. The curtains on the windows were stiff from years of non-use, and the cushions on the loveseats and sofas had lost what was surely once a vibrant color due to years of sunlight exposure. I repeat: this dorm was definitely haunted.

Since there were cat gremlins who could spout fire, men that bore very shark-like teeth, and people that could actually be fish in disguise… well, who is to say there can’t be ghosts, too? I swallowed down the lump in my throat, ignoring the chill going down my spine and the goosebumps that were spreading along my arms. “Th-This place is lovely.” I squeaked, failing to keep my voice level. Headmaster Crowley chuckled.

“Staying here will at least keep you out of the rain. Your room is just upstairs in the west wing- first door on the right. I will be doing more research, so make yourself at home. All I ask is that you do not go wandering around the school.”

Oh, that’s easy. I’m an introvert by nature. I flashed him a grin, though he couldn’t actually see it. “Okie dokie! But, um, seriously- thank you. Again.” My grin became a little more genuine, a bright smile spreading across my face as I tried to convey my gratitude. Judging by the way his eyes flickered, I guess it worked a little. “You really are the kindest!”

He was very pleased by my words. “Ufufuf~ indeed. Farewell for now.”

The man folded his arms across his chest and I recoiled, startled to see him vanish again. So he seriously _could_ teleport? Wow. Um, okay. I coughed a little in my facemask and looked around, wondering if I should try and suck-up the fear to make this place a little more habitable, or if I should just head up to my room. Knowing who I am as a person, if I started to try cleaning I wouldn’t stop until every freaking room was cleared… and I would exhaust myself within the first five minutes all things considered.

Would I stop after being exhausted? Probably not.

But… that last dream, whatever it was about, unnerved me, and this place was so creepy I wasn’t sure I could even fall asleep anyway. I let out a small sigh, pulling at the draped layers of the weird robe I was wearing, and began to make my way to the staircase. I can’t believe a school would just let a building get this gross without at least demolishing it. Did they have any clubs or sports? Why not let it be some kind of meeting area or whatever for lock-ins? I don’t get it.

Granted, where I’m from we didn’t _have_ dormitories since it was typically public schools. I made to place a hand on the staircase railing habitually, being rather well-known for my clumsiness, but the sight of the dust and webs stopped me. I didn’t want to get my wounds infected. So, instead, I walked slowly up the stairs and headed into the west wing.

Thank goodness Headmaster Crowley was so nice. I mean, it was weird that he kept mentioning how nice he was, but if it kept him happy I would go along with it. I needed a place to stay until I could get back home, after all. Even if it is this gross place. I can already hear the voices of the people back of home yelling at me to get out of this dorm. It was moldy and dusty and gross, and not at all inhabitable for someone with my health conditions. This plague mask was going to help me greatly, but…

“ _Please_ tell me you’re joking.”

The ceiling was dripping, rain starting to pour outside.

“Ew, ew, ew. Why?” I held the robe close, grimacing at the puddles that were forming on the floor. I could see the mold on the ceiling, alongside the cracks that the rain water was leaking through. Did this place even have a bucket? How many would I need considering how rundown this place is? So gross.

“Gyaaah! It’s pouring down like crazy!”

No! I whirled around, alarmed. I was hoping I imagined it, but there it was- the freaking cat gremlin from before who bit me. Grim saw me staring and grinned, standing up on his hind paws. He laughed.

“You’ve got this stupid look on your face! Like a spider that got attacked with a watergun! It was no trouble getting back into this school, I’ll have you know. I am a genius.” His icy blue eyes flashed and the cat gremlin stepped forward, causing me to take a step back cautiously. My legs were tensed, ready to make a run for it if needed, despite knowing I wouldn’t make it very far. “If you think me getting thrown out is gonna make me give up, then you’ve got another thing coming! I _will_ become a student here!”

“W-Why… Why do you wanna be a student so bad?” I forced out, wondering if maybe I could talk my way out of this situation. “What’s so great about it?”

“That’s obvious.” He scoffed. “I’m a genius, destined to become a great magician! I’ve been waiting forever to have the Ebony Carriage pick me up, but…” Grim paused, trailing off as his tone suddenly softened. I blinked, furrowing my brows and hesitantly kneeling down to make myself closer to his level. It almost looked like he was about to cry. “But…” The cat gremlin shook his head, snapping himself out of it. “That stupid mirror doesn’t have the eye for this kinda thing!”

He folded his arms over his chest. I blinked, wondering how a cat-like creature could do that pose.

“Anyway! That’s why I snuck in.” Grim grinned. “Not letting me into the academy would be a loss for the world; the humans are just too stupid to realize it!”

...I hated the fact that I took pleasure in seeing a drop of water leak from the ceiling, the liquid landing on top of the little gremlin’s head and soaking his face. The cat-creature squealed.

“S-So cold! Why is it leaking!?”

Another drop.

“Noo! Stop! My adorable ear flames are going to go out!” He covered his head with his paws, staggering backwards. “Gah!” I looked up at the ceiling, squinting as I tried to see which cracks the rain was leaking in from. This place was such a mess. “Magic should fix this up real quick! Hurry it up!”

“Huh?” I blinked, looking at him in confusion. “What?”

“Fix it!” He demanded, pointing at the ceiling as he got splashed with another drop. He swatted at the air. “Use magic and fix this stupid place!”

Oh. I snorted. “Yeah; no can do, buddy.” I held my bandaged hands up for him to see. “Weren’t you listening during the ceremony? I can’t do magic.”

Grim stared wide-eyed before his face scrunched up. I was surprised to see him start laughing, the cat gremlin curling his lips back and baring his face at me in a grin. “You’re completely useless then, ain’t ya? Ha!”

“Then you do it.” I scowled. I would never actually do it, but I know I would obtain the greatest satisfaction if I could just pelt this bratty feline out the dusty window. “If you’re so great, show off how useful you are.”

“What? Uh, no thanks. I’m just a regular monster taking shelter.”

Monster? Ah, so that’s what he was. I scrunched my nose up and pushed up my mask a little, feeling it slip a little on my nose. Gods, I hated masks. I despised wearing them. Unfortunately, they were necessary.

“If you want me to do any work you better get some tuna cans ready, missy.”

Coming to the conclusion that this monster only existed to cause trouble and irritate me, I rolled my eyes and turned around. “You know what? I’m not even gonna bother. Bye-bye.” Grim let out a noise of confusion, asking me what on earth I was doing, but I ignored him. I continued my march down the hallway and opened the door Headmaster Crowley told me about, scowling when I saw Grim was following me. Closing my eyes and pacing my breathing, I forced my heart to calm, gaining control of my temper before it could cause me to say anything harsh.

Normally I was pretty good about shutting down my negative emotions, but this little brat monster was testing me.

It was fine though- and why? Because it’s always fine. I just needed to focus on finding something to catch the dripping water with. I rummaged around the room, peering through the dusty closet and panickedly stomping on any spiders that snuck their way into sight. I disliked the feeling of dirt and grime on my hands, but this needed to be done. And hey- guess what? I eventually found a bucket.

“Victory, victory~.” I half-heartedly sang, not putting too much emotion into it thanks to my feelings towards this situation. I really wanted to go home. I broke out into several coughs and sneezed, wrinkling my nose as I made my way back out into the hallway. Grim, the little brat, made himself comfortable on the bed. The urge for revenge was strong. “This is so lame…”

I left the door wide open, so the mutterings of “cursed rain” and “stupid humans” reached my ears fairly easily. Maybe all the signs were wrong; maybe this really was just one very vivid dream? Dreamception, even, considering I’ve had several weird and confusing dreams since coming here. No, before I even woke up.

Just what were they about, though? All I can remember is that they left me disturbed.

Like… now. The hairs on the back of my neck were standing up and I shivered, feeling goosebumps running along my arms. I tugged hood close to my neck, trying to ignore this cold and haunting feeling. “It’s fine. It’s fine, it’s fine, it’s fine. It’s just…” I scooted the bucket in a different place, attempting to distract myself. “It’s just me and that cat, and… no one else.”

Right? Frick, what are some songs I can sing in my head? Something distracting…

The area seemed to grow colder and I flinched, feeling a drop of water from the ceiling land on my hand. Thankfully it was only a little so it didn’t bother the bandages, but… it did cause me to jump. My nerves were on edge. I had this… gross churn in my stomach that was telling me something was _very_ wrong.

I know Grim appeared out of nowhere, but there was no way a murderer would actually show up. This is a school campus; this dorm is right _next_ to the freaking school. I was just being paranoid. Headmaster Crowley wouldn’t go through all this trouble just to have me killed off, right? That would be a waste of effort. What would he gain from it?

I’m simply imagining things. That’s all.

_“Ehehehe…”_

Nope. Nope, nope, nope. That was Grim still talking to himself. I’m certain of it.

_“We haven’t had a guest in so long~!”_

Don’t turn around. Don’t do it. This is how you die in horror movies; I refuse. I don’t even have my phone to call the police or anyone else, nonetheless a way to contact the headmaster, and the only other “person” here was Grim. The very gremlin that made my hands and fingers erupt in pure unadulterated _agony_ with just the littlest movement. But I had to keep moving them, because there is so much one has to use their hands for. If it was just one hand- rather, more specifically my left hand- I might be less salty and bitter about all of it, but he had attacked me for selfish reasons and I did not agree with that.

Just… don’t turn around. I swallowed down the lump in my throat and slowly stood, stepping to the side while keeping my eyes on the floor ahead of me. _“Ehhh? Pretending not to hear us? Gehehe! Cute.”_ Nope. I refuse. The stars are not in position for this. Nearing the wall, I followed it to the door that led to my room. Since my eyes were down I could see Grim poke his head out, confused by all the noise.

“What’s going on…?” He asked, glaring at me. “I can’t sleep with all this-”

The cat monster cut himself off, eyes staring behind me- _above me_ \- and growing wide.

“G… Gh… Gh-Gh-Ghooooosts!”

Frick. Steeling myself for whatever horrific abomination that was surely going to plague my nightmares from this night forth if I somehow survived, I looked over my shoulder to see our new unwanted guests.

They were… strange, to say the least; they looked less like the ghosts from television shows and movies, and more like something you would see in an old cartoon. Two were round and puffy, colored stark white, and reminded me of the pillsbury doughboy from the commercials that used to play when I was little. The third was a lot skinnier with a face more closely resembling that of an actual skull, especially with its jaw, but they all wore the exact same tophat and cape. The sclera of theirs eyes were a light blue and their irises… gods- it only made them creepier seeing that they were the exact same shade of black as the pupils.

I found myself less scared and more confused, but my anxiety and discomfort remained. “Wh-Who are- what-?”

One of the chubbier ghost spoke, floating a little closer. I took a step back. _“The people who used to live here got scared of us and left…”_

 _“So we’ve been looking for more ghost pals!”_ The largest one exclaimed, grinning. A chill ran down my spine and I swallowed hard, feeling myself starting to grow a little dizzy as the panic became too much for my poor lungs. _“How about you guys? Wanna join our crew? Gehehehe!”_

Blinking a couple of times, I waited for the pounding in my skull to dissipate before gingerly placing my hands lightly together, flashing the ghosts a beaming smile. “Y-You know, I really appreciate the offer, but, uh…” I glanced down at Grim, who was trembling from tail-to-ears. I looked back at our transparent companions. “We’d really rather not? Haha…ha…”

 _“Oh, we weren’t asking.”_ The skinny one sneered. He and his buddies started to move towards us. _“It’s your turn to die!”_

My eyes went wide and I shrieked, ducking down and making a lung for it. “Nope!” One of their hands sailed narrowly over my head and I scrambled out of the way, gasping as I tried to make my escape. It was only when I felt something clawing at my arm that I realized I had grabbed Grim when I made my move, and the struggling cat monster kicked me in the face with his hindpaws to get me to let go. I yelped, losing my balance as a result, and suddenly Grim went flying towards the staircase. My hands screamed in agony and I cringed, curled up on my side on the ground, eyes stinging. “J-Jerk…!”

“I-I-I am not scared of some gh-ghosts!” He cried, standing up straight. The fur on his tail was standing up and his ears were drawn back, but he was glaring at me defiantly. “Th-The G-Great Grim does not need help from some… some p-puny, magicless human!”

I hate him, I hate him, I hate him-!

I grit my teeth and rolled onto my front, a hiss escaping my lips when I tried to sit up. I could hear the ghosts laughing as they neared, and when I stood the wooden floor beneath my right foot gave out- causing me to stumble and cry out when I fell again. Grim jumped, startled by the noise, and watched as my leg got stuck in the floorboards. “No, no, no! N-No…!” This was too much. I can’t take it anymore. The tears welled up and I reeled my head back, feeling myself start to cry. I was so frustrated and scared, I wasn’t sure if I could handle this anymore. “No…!”

I can’t breathe. I can’t think. I’m dizzy and it’s hard to see, and the ghosts are getting closer! I want to go home! The ghosts were laughing at me, mocking me and making jokes about how easy it was going to be to kill us.

“S-Shut up!” Grim snapped, squeezing his eyes shut and holding out his front paws. Blue flames came to life and shot towards the ghost, nearly hitting me in the process, and I watched through bleary vision as the unwelcome guests laughed. “Go away!”

_“Where are you aiming?”_

_“Over here~ gehehe!”_

“I’ll kill you! Fuunnnagh!” He let loose another blast of flame, this time from his mouth, but it missed again. During all this the ghosts had stopped trying to approach me and were merely toying with Grim, snickering and taunting him for his bad aim. My foot was still stuck in the wood and it probably wasn’t going to come out any time soon, but sitting still for these few minutes was doing me some good. I was still dizzy as all frick and feeling like I was about to throw up, but I could at least think again. “Gah! I-I keep missing!?”

“His eyes are closed…” I realized. Eyebrows raising, I leaned over and raised my voice just slightly, “Grim, to the left! Left!”

“I don’t take orders from you!”

Oh my gods. We’re about to die and he’s still being a little freaking brat. Ugh, I wanna smack him. The flames were starting to spread along the floor and walls, and I knew if it kept up the entire dorm was going to be set aflame. “Y-You’re gonna…” Breathe, girl. “You’re gonna burn down the building!”

“I _said_ to shut up!” He yelled, blue flames rising higher. I flinched when some got a bit too close for my liking, able to feel their heat from just three feet away. I’ve never been more grateful to Headmaster Crowley for giving me this mask, otherwise that smoke would be giving me serious problems. “Damn it~! You’re a bunch of cowards for ganging up on us!”

“O-On your right! Behind me! To the left!”

“Fuunnaaaagh!” My voice was clearly aggravating him, as proven when he raised his paws up upon hearing me speak and sent fire shooting directly at me. I barely ducked in time to avoid getting singed, but the ghost that was behind me wasn’t so lucky. The skinny ghost screeched and cried out, patting out the flames that had caught on his cape. Grim’s eyes snapped open, the cat monster alarmed. “I… I hit one?”

“A-After almost taking me out… in the process.” I wheezed, sending him a dark look. “T-Try not to… burn me alive, too, please.”

“Aw, be quiet.” He snapped. A toothy grin spread across his face, the cat monster cracking his little paws as best as he could since he didn’t really have fingers. He was trying so hard to imitate people, wasn’t he? Huh. “Let’s chase these freaks outta here! Tell me where to shoot!”

I mean, that was what I had been doing… but whatever. This one was going to take a while getting used to, evidently. Ugh.

The next five minutes consisted of me breathlessly shouting orders to Grim, awkwardly stammering where each of the ghosts were hiding. Grim must have really studied up on human behavior and objects, because otherwise I don’t think he would have understood half of what I was saying. I sort of just… stopped really _being there_ somewhere in the middle, dissociating myself from the situation at hand.

Everything was going to be fine, after all. I can’t focus… if there are too many emotions. I can’t breathe if I get too panicked.

Left, right, seven o’clock, ten o-clock, twelve o’clock, in front of you.

Again and again, I said these words. More, less, and soon a rhythmic pattern began to form.

Left-and-right-and-left. Back, behind you. Above me.

Flames were dancing all over. Sweat beaded down the sides of my face, smoke and heat suffocating me. I was absolutely terrified… and yet I couldn’t feel a thing.

Oh. The ghosts are retreating now. That’s… good.

Yes, that’s very good. We’re safe.

Safe…

I blinked, staring blankly at the foot still stuck in the floorboard. Grim was speaking in the background, and while I could hear him I wasn’t exactly listening. I sat there for a while, just thinking, processing what just happened. Everything that’s happened. Flames were still burning around us, hot and bright and suffocating.

“Good evening, Miss Quince~!” I heard someone sing, the familiar voice snapping me out of my shock and forcing me back into reality. I inhaled sharply, whirling around with wide eyes to see someone walking up the staircase with a tray of food in his hands. “The wonderfully kind me has brought you dinner- _eh? Ehhh!?_ Why is the dorm on fire!?”

Holding the tray with one hand, he snapped his fingers with his other and all the fire dissipated. I could feel myself shaking, something inside beginning to break at the sight of the one person who has been helping me since my arrival here. Headmaster Crowley blinked, seeing me stranded on the floor with my foot still stuck.

“I think you have some explaining to do.”

My lips curled back and I choked, but as I tried to speak the tears started falling, the emotions rushing out of the gate. His golden eyes went wide, then narrowed in anger when he saw Grim parading near the other staircase- the one that led to the third floor. “Nyahaha! Victory is mine! Ha!”

“You little~!” Headmaster Crowley set the tray of food on the flat part of the railing and marched forward, reaching for the whip attached to his belt. “I threw you out earlier, did I not!? How dare you return here!”

Grim scoffed, folding his arms and grinning cheekily at the adult. “I’ll have you know that I just got rid of your little ghost problem! You should be bowing with gratitude!”

“Ghost problem…?” The man echoed, coming to a halt a few feet away from the monster. He frowned, lowering his “whip of love” and frowning, staring him down after taking a quick glance at me from over his shoulder. “What do you mean by that?”

And so Grim explained the situation to the man. He mentioned several times how utterly useless I was in the actual battle and overplayed his own efforts, and sometime in the middle Headmaster Crowley came over and helped me free my leg from the floor. My foot had twisted in just the right way that made it near impossible to get out without help. I clung to his arm for about three seconds as I stood, before moving over to lean against the wall instead. Grim placed his paws on his hips, beaming.

“Ah… that’s right.” Headmaster Crowley blinked, bringing a hand up to his chin. “I think I recall there being some students talking about prankster ghosts. Most of them avoid this place because of those rumors. It’s a huge part as to why this dormitory is now unused. Still, for you two to work together… hmmm.”

I blinked, trying to ignore the pounding in my skull in order to focus on what he was saying. Grim scowled. “I’m not gonna overlook that “together” comment. She just sat there all pathetic, watching the battle take place! I should get a can of tuna for all the effort I put in!”

Headmaster Crowley stared at him and then at me, eyes narrowing, and he folded his arms over his chest. “...Do it again.”

“H-Hah?”

He clarified, seeing our expressions, “I’d like the two of you to show me how you exterminated those ghosts.”

Grim looked confused. “But we already scared them off. Before that; give-me-tuna! I’ve done enough work on an empty stomach! If you’re gonna make me do more, at least reward me!”

Headmaster Crowley unfolded his arms, completely serious. It was little unnerving seeing him like this. In the short time I knew him I had grown used to his smile. “I shall be the ghost. If you defeat me, then I will give you several tuna cans.” Oh, there it was. I found myself relaxing, seeing that self-gratifying grin on his face. “For I am very kind. Here we go- _transformation potion!”_

I watched with wide eyes as he pulled a small bottle out of his coat pocket, unscrewing the cork and raising the bottle up to his lips. He gulped the liquid down without hesitation, smiling all the while, and he let out a small gasp as he pulled it away. There was a flash of light and then, as if he was a pōkemon that had just evolved, he transformed into a slightly chubby ghost. The only difference he had from the others was that he was still wearing the weird crow mask and top hat. “Wh-Whoa…”

Grim seemed unimpressed by the transformation, even though the sight of Headmaster Crowley as a ghost clearly disturbed him. “I really don’t wanna do this… not if it means teaming up with her again…”

Swallowing down the lump in my throat I neared the second flight of stairs, plopping down beside Grim. I was too tired to care or be afraid of him. “It… It’s a… chance for tuna… isn’t it?” The cat monster looked at me. He grimaced and shot a glare towards the adult.

“This is the last time!” Grim declared angrily. “You _have_ to give me tuna! Or else I won’t forgive you! Got that?”

Wait, we’re actually doing this? I wasn’t expecting that to work. Um, okay. Let’s do this, I guess. I inhaled deeply, feeling my heart calm down despite the prickly and suffocating pressure in my chest. It was just the headmaster, so no harm could actually be done unless it was by Grim. I just have to be careful with my instructions.

“Please, do feel free to attack.” He told Grim, floating around the room with a grin. Seeing him act like that only served to freak out Grim completely, the cat monster flinching away. “You will be fine. I am kind, after all, and I will be gentle during this battle. Any flames that hurt the dorm I can remove, so go all out.”

Grim inhaled shakily and forced himself to move down the stairs, standing in the middle of the hall, eyes squeezed shut. “O-Okay… no other choice then. If I do this then I get tuna, so~ human! Give me instructions!”

Headmaster Crowley appeared in the air above, chuckling. “Then let us begin.”

This battle went a lot easier than the previous one, if only because I could actually concentrate now that I was calmer. My headache was still a nuisance, but it was easier to keep track of one ghost instead of three. “There, two o’clock!”

“Got it! Fghnnnyaaa!”

Headmaster Crowley let out a small “ow” and backed up, disappearing again after being hit by the flame. “Very good. How about we make things a little more challenging now?”

Oh no. Please don’t. I almost said these words aloud, but I caught myself in time. He was being ridiculously nice to me, so I didn’t want to make him angry. I yelped and leaned back in surprise when I saw him start zipping around the room, flying at an incredible speed. Even Grim was alarmed. “Wh-Why so fast!?” The monster exclaimed. Headmaster Crowley disappeared, voice full of amusement as he spoke.

“Now then… can you figure this one out, Miss Quince? Little monster?”

Frick. The pressure is on. I pressed the back of my arm to the bottom of the plague mask, biting on my bottom lip nervously. Grim waved his arms around in frustration as the adult reappeared and started to zip around again. “The Great Grim will figure this one out easy! J-Just you wait!”

Okay. Okay, we can do this.

This is fine. Oh gods, he’s moving too fast. Calm down. I think… there’s a pattern to his movements. Yeah, yeah- there! I hurriedly told Grim where to shoot and he did so, and this continued on for several minutes. After a while I started to get thirsty, so I shakily stood and began to make my way slowly over to the tray of food that was brought for me, still giving directions. I lowered my mask and held the tray carefully, picking up the glass that was on it, bringing the drink up to my lips and taking a sip.

_Holy frick monkeys that’s so good._

I was seriously dehydrated. Water has never been so delicious. “Left!”

“Funnaaagh!” Aha. Perfect. “This isn’t so hard!”

“Fufufu~!” Headmaster Crowley chuckled. “How about more than one opponent then?”

Nope. He hates me. He acts kind, says he’s kind, but he totally isn’t actually kind. This man is sadistic. I’m calling it now. “Grim! Full circle!” The cat monster wasted no time, inhaling deep and then spinning, blowing fire out from his mouth and dissipating all three new ghosts at once, forcing the headmaster back. The man blinked.

“That was surprising.”

“Ha… hah…” Grim wheezed, slumping over. “I got them all. C-Can’t you be more gentle!? Jeez. You’re being way too rough! A… Anyway, how was that? I did great, didn’t I? Didn’t… argue with the dumb human or anything this time! That’s deserving of all the tunas, isn’t it?”

Oh my god, this sandwich is so good. I don’t even think I like half the stuff that’s on it, but frick man; I’m too hungry and stressed to care. Headmaster Crowley’s transformation wore off and he returned to normal, startling Grim again, but I was too distracted to jump. I just winced at the flash of light and turned to look when it was gone, seeing him stare at me.

He looked… really stunned. “I can’t believe that there’s actually a human who can command and tame monsters.”

Hah?

Headmaster Crowley frowned, humming in thought as he crossed an arm over his chest, propping up his elbow with his hand cupping his chin. “Actually, back at the entrance ceremony… my teacher-senses were telling me that you might have talent as an animal or beast trainer. But… no matter how…” I was completely dumbfounded, standing there listening to him mumble away with half a chip dangling in front of my mouth. Grim was just as lost.

That was when I realized- even if they’re gone now… the ghosts might just come back. If Headmaster Crowley throws out Grim again then I really might be killed. I also didn’t want to be attacked or threatened by the cat monster again, so maybe- yeah. Yeah, I’ll try it. He likes to show off how “kind” he is, anyway. Maybe if I ask nicely it might work.

“U-Um, sir?” Headmaster Crowley paused upon hearing my voice, turning to see me awkwardly raising a bandaged hand. “S-Sorry if it’s… too much, but can… can Grim stay here? With me? Please?” The cat monster looked at me, eyes wide with disbelief. “He really wants to be a student a-and…”

“Absolutely not.” There was no hesitation. “He is a monster!”

“B-But…” Frick. This wasn’t working. I cringed, curling my wounded hands close to my chest. “But what if the ghosts come back? I-I can’t… use magic.” That was extremely scary. I didn’t even want to imagine what they would do to me if they knew I had no way to defend myself. “They might… a-attack again and I…”

He stared at me for a long moment, then lowered his head with a sigh, giving in. “Alright. It really can’t be helped when put like that… fine. He can stay. However!” He quickly added, seeing Grim’s face light with excitement, the monster convinced he was actually going to be able to have his dream come true. “I absolutely can _not_ allow someone, nonetheless a monster like him, into this school when he was not even chosen by the Mirror of Darkness. I can’t have you remain as a freeloader either.”

“Th… That’s fair.” I worried my bottom lip, brows furrowing in thought as I raised the mask back to my face. Grim looked heavily disappointed.

“Talk about a short-lived joy.” He scowled. Headmaster Crowley flashed him a look.

“Let me finish talking.” The man faced me again. “Concerning the fact that you were called here, the school has to take responsibility as the owner of the mirror. I believe I mentioned this before, yes? You can live in the dormitory for free, of course, and eat at the school cafeteria, but any other necessities must be provided by yourself. Seeing as you have nothing to your name… and are rather sickly at that… hmmm.”

He walked forward, causing me to tense as he stopped in front me. Headmaster Crowley placed his hands on his hips, thinking deeply.

“What exactly should I make you do? What are you talents?”

“My… talents?” That was one heck of a question. Um. Let me think. “I-I’m good at art? Wait. What kind of talents do you mean? I… I have pretty good customer service skills, I guess. Oh! I know how to work a register!” Those glowing yellow eyes were intense, and being put on the spot like this made it hard for me to answer. “I can’t be around chemicals without a… a mask, but… I’m pretty good at cleaning so long as I know what to do…”

Oof. Maybe I shouldn’t have said that. A grin curled onto his face and he snapped his fingers, stepping back. “That’s it! Here is my proposition, Miss Quince; if you are so willing, how about doing odd jobs around campus? Such as sweeping the streets and polishing the statues?”

“O-Oh…” Yeah, that’s do-able, I think. “O-Okay. That works!”

“Oi,” Grim growled, walking over, “where’s my say in this?”

Headmaster Crowley ignored him, extending his arms out in a gran gesture towards us both, smiling widely. “Then you two shall become the school’s side janitors! This way you’ll have special permission to be on school grounds and no one can force me to kick you out onto the streets. You’ll also be able to research ways to get home in the library, or just study and read whatever you want after your work is done. Aha~ again, my kindness astounds even me!” He placed a hand to his cheek, laughing.

Grim made a face. “Whaaat? Seriously? I’m not okay with this!”

I raised a hand up quickly. “I am! I am totally okay with this.”

Grim glared at me. “Shut up, human! I want to wear that fancy uniform you’ve got and go to school!”

Headmaster Crowley flashed him a sickeningly sweet smile, lowering his hand and resting it on his favored whip that was attached to his hip. “Oh, its fine if you don’t want to, little monster. I can simply toss you out again. I’m only doing this for Miss Quince, after all.” Grim jumped, holding his paws up in alarm.

“I-I’m good, I’m good! I’ll do it! That’s all it is, right? Just… cleaning the streets?”

“And watering the plants, and polishing the statues, and washing the windows, and whatever else comes to my mind that needs to be cleaned or done.” Headmaster Crowley listed off. The thought of doing all that stuff at once made me dread agreeing to this. I can already feel my lungs sort of shrivel up inside of me, exhausted by the very _idea_ of all the stress they were going to be put through from my moving around so much. “It’s decided then. From tomorrow henceforth, you both should endeavor to become the best side janitors you can be at Night Raven College! You will be paid of course, seeing as this is to be an official job… and so you can afford any necessities that you may require. I shall come collect you tomorrow to instruct you on what to do. Good night!”

He clapped his hands and vanished. I blinked. “Good night…?”

Grim groaned loudly. “I can’t believe I’m stuck with you! Ugh, this is awful! Nothing has gone to plan!”

“...Do you _ever_ stop complaining?”


	4. A New Job

I was swimming in the ink again. Trying again and again to reach the child, yet failing every time. It felt so hopeless. Hearing them cry and sob to their mother- _about her_ \- twisted my heart in all sorts of painful ways, making me want to just hold this child and tell them everything was going to be okay. I didn’t understand how people could be so cruel their children, but then again… the world was full of toxic parents.

I had an aunt myself that wasn’t the best. She and her daughter are the main reasons why I’m such a skittish person now. Some people just really aren’t meant to procreate.

_“Mama…”_

These roses and their thorns burn! What is their purpose? I don’t understand. Are they warning me to not get too close? That something will happen to the child if I do? I can feel the thorns growing in my lungs, tearing me apart inside. It’s so awful. Such beautiful flowers and I can’t even breathe because of them.

I wish I could see this child’s face. Then they would be able to see _me_ and I would be able to communicate them, regardless of the fact that I couldn’t speak. Eventually the dream faded away and I awoke again, laying on the half-collapsed mattress and staring groggily at the ceiling as I forgot all about what had transpired. Ugh, was dust falling from the ceiling…? Gross.

My nose twitched and I sneezed. A chill washed over the room and a voice called out, snickering, _“Geheeehee~ aren’t you two supposed to be getting ready for work? Why are you still asleep?”_

Damn it. I really am still here. Worst than that- so were the ghosts. The skinny one was floating in the air just a few feet above me. I don’t know about you, but waking up to the face of a dead person was not the way I wanted to start my morning. Grim jolted awake, hearing the voices. The largest ghost came over, placing his hands on his belly and laughing.

_“Laze about too long and you’ll never wake up again!”_

The chubby one grinned. _“Yeah, you’ll be like us!”_

“Wh-Why are they back!?” Grim cried out, leaping into my lap as though he hadn’t been intent on hurting me yesterday. I jolted, startled by his behavior and closeness, and resisted the urge to smack him away. I still didn’t like this monster cat, but _jeez_ was it hard to turn away someone who was clinging to me for help. “Do something!”

“L-Like what?” I wheezed, coughing a little as I leaned over to grab the plague mask I set on the dresser beside the bed. I held it up to my face, inhaling deeply as the respirator did its job. “Y-You have the… the magic!”

“Ugh, you’re so useless!” Grim growled. “Fine, let’s do this! Fnaaaagh!”

I watched as the cat monster opened his mouth and let loose a blast of flames, aimed at the skinny ghost directly in front of us. _“Ow! Aiyaaaa- hot, hot, hot!”_ The ghost vanished, falling back and reappearing on the farther side of the room.

 _“We really can’t kill you, huh?”_ The pillsbury doughboy ghost asked, pouting. He folded his large arms over his chest. _“Boring.”_

_“Gehehe! We’ll just have to find some other way to torment you then.”_

I made a face at that, imagining all the different ways ghosts could torment a human being. My childhood mostly consisted of being traumatized by horror movies, so it wasn’t too terribly difficult to imagine getting possessed or attacked by someone who was under possession. I shivered, shooing Grim off my lap with my arm and sliding off the half-collapsed mattress. “Please don’t.”

They simply laughed. They and Grim followed me around as I pulled my boots on and tied the mask on properly, and seeing this I repressed a sigh. Even in another world I ended up attracting unwanted crowds. I wish there was a trashcan nearby… I could hide next to it and pretend not to exist. Granted, people still ended up surrounding me then- so would it even help? Such a pain.

_I’m hungry…_

Headmaster Crowley said I could eat at the cafeteria, but did the cafeteria serve breakfast? I don’t even know how to get there or where it was at. I really didn’t want to have to ask around either. I worried my bottom lip as I wandered throughout the dorm, relaxing only when I found the bathroom. I told Grim to stay put in the hallway- of which the ghosts decided he was going to be their new target for now since he was so easy to rile up- and I rummaged through the cabinets.

It was an abandoned dorm, but it still had to have _some_ stuff in good shape. Right?

“So gross…”

I scrunched my nose up and stood on my toes, reaching into the dusty cabinet and trying to pull out a small plastic container in the back. I almost had it when I felt something crawling on my hands. No, no, no! My reaction was immediate. I yanked my arm out and thrashed it, squealing in fright as I tried to throw the evil critter off.

“Getitoff, getitoff, getitoff!”

“Why’re you yellin’!?” I heard Grim shout from the other side of the door. “What happened?”

“Getoff!” Finally. Phew. Oh thanks gods. I wheezed, hunching over and staring at the spider as it stood there on the floor. “F-Freaking demon…”

It scurried away and I let out another shriek, jumping closer to the door. Nope. Nope. I can’t do this. I give up. Just kill me now. I leaned against the door for a few moments, wrist to my chest as I tried to steady my labored breathing. The day just started and it’s already chaos. Freaking heck. This place does not want to give me a break.

Once I calmed down I went back to my mission of rummaging through the cabinets. After about a minute or two I found what I was looking for; an unused toothbrush. It was still in the package. My guess is that someone had a dentist trip and this was their reward for actually showing up, and just left it to collect dust. There were a couple others, too, as well as some toothpaste. A grin curled onto my lips as I wandered over to the sink, washing the dust off so I could open them.

It was… rough trying to open the toothbrush package, what with my hands being so messed up, and I had to resort to using my teeth- which was sort of ironic. But I got it open! Victory was mine. My mouth wasn’t very happy though. Ow.

At least with these I can keep some sort of hygiene in this place…

“Are you dead, Human?”

“N… Nope.” I answered, voice a little airy. “M’fine.”

“Good! Because if you died I wouldn’t be able to stay here anymore! Got it? You have to stay alive just long enough for me to become a student. You’re my way in.”

Oh, wow, how kind of him. I made a face in the mirror, sticking my tongue out and rolling my eyes. Maybe I was being too bitter about all this, but… he really shouldn’t just attack people upon first meeting. I won’t be able to draw for a while because of him! Just brushing my teeth hurts and I have to hold the brush all weird to even be able to use it. I feared how hard eating with utensils was going to be.

I might just have to deal with the pain when that time comes.

Finishing getting ready for the day, I pulled the mask back on and placed my hood over my head. There was no point to it, but I found myself holding my head in different poses in front of the mirror with a childish grin. I looked like a very fancy grim reaper; all I needed was the scythe. Oh, that would be perfect. Hopefully rumors have already spread about me among the students so no one will think I’m weird for being dressed like this. It was a _ceremonial_ robe after all. It wasn’t exactly meant to be worn outside of important events.

Maybe with the paycheck I get from Headmaster Crowley later I can actually get some decent clothes and pajamas. And more bathroom supplies. And medicine. And all of that is going to cost a fortune, which one measly paycheck isn’t going to be able to afford! I groaned and leaned over the sink, distressed. I don’t even have insurance in this world! Heck, I don’t _exist_ in this world! I was born on a different planet, or a different universe, or something, and without insurance medicine will cost an arm and a leg.

And I need so much of it…

I hate this! I hate my freaking body! I can’t do anything because of it.

All I have is the respirator I’m wearing and that’s just a temporary solution. I’m screwed. I’m amazed my lungs are doing so well right now, but… if healing magic isn’t a thing…

No. No, I’m just not going to think about it. I stood up straight and inhaled sharply, staring fiercely into the mirror. Adapting was something I was always pretty good at, so that was exactly what I was going to do. Adults always seemed to like me, if them acting like mothers towards me were any sign, so if I can win some of the teachers over everything should be fine. I can get their help.

_That’s social interaction though…_

I can’t believe I’m actually plotting right now. I’ve only been here a day and my personality is shifting all over. This stress is seriously not good for me. I need to stop and just calm down. Relax.

“What’s taking you so long!? Hurry it up! I’m starvin’!”

If I could curl my fingers and make strangling motions at my reflection in the mirror without nearly breaking out into tears, I would. There was no way I was going to be able to relax with this cat monster around. Oh- I almost forgot. Headmaster Crowley said he’d be dropping by this morning, right? I should probably head back to the room then or wait in the lounge.

I think my room was closest, so…

“Finally!” Grim exclaimed, seeing me walk out into the hallway. “You took forever!”

Okay, first off- “Maybe if you didn’t _shred my hands_ I could brush my teeth faster.”

He crossed his arms, glaring at me. “It was your fault for not handing over the uniform! You’re even wearing it now! You’re such a jerk.”

“I have nothing else to wear!”

“Tch! Likely story. Man, I really want some tuna right now…”

I am calm. I am very calm. I am the calmest calm has ever been. I do not have thoughts of hitting this cat monster. I do not imagine throwing him out the nearest window. I have no desire for revenge. I am calm.

Although, theoretically speaking, how mad _would_ Headmaster Crowley be if I did do those things? Hmm.

Curious and curiouser.

 _“Are you all gonna be living here?”_ A ghost asked as we walked back into the bedroom. The bad feeling that I had since yesterday refused to go away, and the longer I stayed in the place the worse it got. I knew from the start today wasn’t going to be a good day. Everything that’s happened this morning just sort of solidified that. The skinny ghost curled his lips up into a grin. _“Prepare for pranks then, kehe!”_

“We’ll get rid of you eventually.” Grim promised with a glare. “Just you wait.”

At least he wasn’t so scared of them anymore. He might be able to fight them without my having to give directions. Man… I really wasn’t looking forward to cleaning. Headmaster Crowley was probably going to give me all sorts of impossible tasks. Unless of course he decides to show off “kind” he is again. That would be nice.

Getting along with the headmaster would be the best way to lead into befriending the teachers. I normally try to get along with everyone, so it shouldn’t be too hard… even if authority figures intimidate me. Ick. The headmaster is the whole reason why I’m even able to have a place to stay right now, so it’s better to just get along with him anyway. If I make him mad he might really kick me out onto the streets.

I shouldn’t push my luck. Just go with the flow.

Be myself and… hope that everything turns out for the best. Yes. That’s my plan. Perfect! Whoa- what’s that sound?

“Miss Quince!” Headmaster Crowley called out, rapping his knuckles against the door. “Are you awake yet? I’m coming in.”

The door opened. I blinked, alarmed by his behavior. That was a power move I’ve only ever seen my parents do. They knock as if to show they respect your privacy, but then let themselves in anyway to assert their dominance in the household. He could have at least given me time to answer his question first before just welcoming himself in. What if I was indecent? Jeez.

“Uh, mornin’?”

“Good morning~!” He sang, holding out his arms. Headmaster Crowley smiled. “Did you sleep well?”

“The lower half of the bed collapsed.” Grim deadpanned. “I was sprawled out all comfy and then the next thing I know I’m falling over! Just how ramshackled did you let this place get? The ghosts even woke me up! This place is the worst.”

I knew some of the boards collapsed, which was why the mattress was out of place, but I didn’t think it was that bad. I wandered over and inspected the bed, eyes widening when I saw it was in even worse shape than previously thought. There were some stray springs and nails alongside the broken boards, which was really quite unsafe. Maybe we should just lay the mattress on the ground by itself without the headboard…?

Headmaster Crowley’s smile never faded, watching with amusement in his glowing yellow eyes as I poked the fallen piece of furniture with my foot. I yelped when the rest of the bed collapsed, falling back onto my rear. “Are you alright, Miss Quince? How did you sleep?”

“H-Huh? O… Oh. I’m, uh, I’m good.” I flashed him a grin, though I knew full well he couldn’t see it. “The mask is helping a lot, thanks. Yesterday was… pretty freaky, so I passed right out after all the ghosts and stuff were deal with. I-I guess you could say I was _dead_ tired?” My grin broadened and I held a hand out, trying to get my joke across. Normally I would have snapped my fingers and struck a goofy pose, but for now I have to improvise. “Ey? Because… Because ghosts are dead people? No? Not funny?”

Headmaster Crowley chuckled, placing his hands on his hips. “I’m glad to see that despite everything you’ve been through, you still have a sense of humor. My earlier impression of you was not wrong. Wonderful!”

For a moment I was confused. Then I remembered what he said back in the infirmary when he was stitching up my hands.

“Now, if you will follow me to the lounge- I need to speak with you about your work for today. And because I am _ever so kind_ I even brought you breakfast! Ahh, my kindness really doesn’t know limits, does it?”

“Nope!” I popped, following him with Grim trailing behind me. We left the bedroom and headed to the staircase. “I don’t think anyone could ever rival you in kindness.”

He laughed loudly. “Right~? I’m so glad you understand! Now, over here, over here. I cleaned up the area a little so we can sit and have our chat while you eat.”

Oh yeah, it’s confirmed; this dude likes having his ego fed. I’ve got this. I love complimenting people, too, so it works! Haha. Victory is mine. I sat down on one of the sofas, pulling off my mask again and reaching out to grab the tray of food sitting on the coffee table. I silenced a hiss of pain and picked it up, setting it on my lap and inhaling the wonderful scent. There was also a single can of tuna for Grim.

“Ehhh? This is all I get!?” The cat monster whined. “I did so much work yesterday!”

“I _could_ take it back.” Headmaster Crowley hummed, taking a seat across from us in a recliner, resting one leg over the other. “If you’re that ungrateful for my generosity…”

“Not ungrateful, not ungrateful! Thank you for the meal!”

I did my best to hide a smile, finding great amusement in their interactions. You reap what you sow, and Grim was going to have to deal with the consequences of having such a mean personality sooner or later. I smiled at the headmaster. “Thank you for the food!” It looked so good. My stomach was so excited.

Back home I always ate the same cereal every day, so seeing an actual _meal_ prepared was amazing. Bacon, an omelette, a tiny bowl of white rice, and some kind of soup; it was simple, but beautiful. And it tasted just as well as it looked. Grim had already finished his tuna, scowling when he saw me try and fail to pick up the utensil properly because of my hands. “Share with me!”

“You never apologized for biting me, so no.” I retorted, holding my tray away from him and resting it on the armrest. I looked at Headmaster Crowley, still smiling. “What all did you want me to do today?”

“Your work for today is to clean the campus.” He informed, raising a glass of tea up to his lips. I blinked- having not even noticed it there before. No, I don’t think it _was_ there before. I’m pretty sure he just conjured up a tea tray out of nowhere. “As it would be quite impossible for you to clean all of it without magic as it is quite large, you are merely meant to sweep Main Street- from the school gate up to the library. We don’t want you to collapse on your first day, after all. Will that be doable for you?”

Just the street? That wasn’t nearby as awful as I was expecting it to be. “I think so, yeah.” I nodded at him, keeping Grim pushed back with an arm as he tried to climb onto my lap and steal my food. I beamed. “I’ve got this!”

“Good, good.” He chuckled. “I also want you to watch your little monster closely; that way he doesn’t cause another scene.”

Grim paused, hearing himself be spoken about. “Eh?”

“I do _not_ want a repeat of yesterday’s events.”

“Sir, yes, sir!” I declared, releasing Grim long enough to give a quick salute. “You can count on me! Hopefully. I’ll do my best.”

Headmaster Crowley smiled. “I am pleased to hear it. Have fun~!”

He snapped his fingers and the tea disappeared, and the man stood. He made his way to the door, big farewell, and left. I was stuck with Grim- who was still trying to steal my food- and I ended up having to eat with one hand holding the silverware in the weirdest pose (between my thumb and side of my forefinger) while I kept him pinned to the couch with my right arm. This monster is a freaking menace.

“I don’t like you.” He stated when he saw me finish up the last of my meal. I set the tray on the table and looked at him with a blank expression, unimpressed. “You’re mean.”

“Says the monster who tried to burn me alive _several times_ already.”

“I already told you- that was because of the uniform!”

“Excuses, excuses.” I stood, grabbing the broom Headmaster Crowley left behind, mask attached to my face again. “Now come on- you get to hold the dustpan while I sweep the dirt and leaves in.”

He scoffed. “As if I’m gonna help you clean! I wanna go to class and make things go _boom_ with spells!”

A child. A bratty child. That’s all this monster is. I took a deep breath. “He gave permission before to study in the library, so you can learn new spells that way. Okay? But _only_ after our work is done. So… if you want to practice magic, you have to help me clean. The faster we finish the faster you can study.”

“Fiiine!” He grumbled, marching outside after me.

Okay. Good. I think I know how to handle Grim now.

Somewhat, anyway.

On the bright side I remembered the path to the school since it was connected to the abandoned dorm, but on the down side I then had to do a loop around the school to actually reach Main Street. Grim begrudgingly did as I told him and he held the dustpan in place as I swept, and I hummed while I did so to keep myself entertained. “Do dodo do~ whistle while you work~!”

“I am not whistling.”

I sighed. “It’s the lyrics, dude. I can’t actually whistle either.”

He glared up at me. “It’s not as though I _can’t_ whistle; I’m just sayin’ I won’t! Now hurry up and keep sweeping! I wanna go practice magic!”

Killjoy.

I clicked my tongue and flinched, holding the broom handle the wrong way, before gritting my teeth and going back to work. “Hmm hm hm hmm... bada da da- gods, this mask is doing wonders. My respirator back home was never this good. How’s the air quality today?” I pulled the mask off and blinked, looking up at the sky. It was so pretty and blue. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it so clear before. “Whoa.”

“Stop lollygagging and get to work!”

“Yes, yes.” I let the mask drape around my neck as I swept, shaking my shoulders in a little dance as I swept. “It won’t take long when there’s a song to help you set the pace~!”

“And _please_ stop singing.”

“Ugh, fine. I’ll be nice and shut up. You’re just jealous of my mad skills.”

He snorted. “As if.”

Man, this street was seriously long. We started about an hour ago and were only halfway to the library. It was a lot easier to sweep a straight path than it was an entire store, so that was awesome, but it was harder to have fun doing it with a grumpy self-centered cat monster by your side. And- oh wow. “Those statues are huge.”

“I didn’t get a good look yesterday,” Grim said, eyes widening when he looked up at them, “but those seven are pretty scary looking.”

Really? My eyebrows furrowed and I tilted my head, feeling my skull start to throb the longer I stared at them. “They look… sorta familiar though. Where is-?” I stepped forward, temporarily abandoning work to observe the statues. They had little nameplates at the bottom. “The Sea Witch?”

She was a big lady, with hair slicked up and a dress that seemed to blend in with her octopus legs. She held some kind of contract in her hands, a wide grin on her face. I knew right away that I didn’t want to get on her bad side. But why… was just looking at her… giving me such a bad headache? I cringed and stepped back, pressing the back of my arm to my forehead.

“Look at this granny!” Grim exclaimed, catching my attention. I blinked and turned around, alarmed to see a very intimidating woman smiling haughtily down at us. “She looks especially snobby.”

“That’s…”

I know her. I _know_ I know her. All of these people- from the intimidating women standing opposite of each from where we were at to the very end with the prideful lion and the man with the fiery hair. I recognized them all. The only problem was that… it hurt trying to remember. My eyes flickered to the woman holding up an apple, and I swallowed down the lump in my throat.

“Grim… what was that song I was just singing?”

“Hah? I dunno, the one about whistling?”

“Y-Yeah.” Where was it from? Where had I heard it before? Oooh, my head. It won’t stop throbbing; I feel like I’m going to throw up if I keep trying to remember. I crouched down, broom dropping to the ground beside me, arms wrapped around my stomach. The world was starting to spin. “Who… Who was it?”

What person sang that song?

“Who was what?” I jolted, not recognizing that voice, and whirled my head around to see an older teen grinning down at me. He had messy orange hair and red eyes, and painted over his left eye was a small heart. If I wasn’t so used to the weird I already I probably would have questioned his eye color. “You don’t know her? She’s the Beautiful Queen.”

“B-Beautiful… Queen?” I echoed. Something didn’t sound quite right about that.

The teen nodded, raising a hand up. “Yup. Every day she used the magic mirror in her castle to check who was the most fairest in the land. Whenever it looked like she might lose her place as the most beautiful, she did everything she could to maintain it. Her determination to remain the most beautiful is actually really freaking amazing.” He knelt down, raising a finger up to his lips as he spoke, almost whispering in a conspiratorial fashion. “They even say she was adept at making poisons~.”

Grim choked. “She’s pretty, but no thanks.”

Poisons… yes. That sounded accurate. I glanced up at the statue again, slowly standing. The boy did the same. “So she poisoned her foes?”

“Probably. Wanna hear about the others?”

“Others? Uh, okay.”

The teen grin and gestured to the statues. “You don’t know about them, right? I’ll tell you. This woman right here- this is the Queen of Hearts! She used to live in a rose maze, and she valued rules and discipline over all else. The Queen of Hearts was strict in all things- from the way the card soldiers marched to the color of the rose bushes! It was a land of madness where everyone submitted to her rule!”

I stared at her smile and cold eyes, and resisted the urge to bring a hand up to my neck. I had the worst feeling about her. “If she was queen… d-did she ever behead people?”

“Hm? Oh, all the time.” He laughed. “You either did what she said or you lost your head! It’s cool, right?”

Grim recoiled. “That’s terrifying!”

“I like it.” He grinned. “I mean, no one will listen to someone who is nice all the time, right? They’d be a total pushover.”

“That’s true…” Grim responded, uncertain. “A strong leader _is_ better.”

“Unless that leader is a total tyrant.” I muttered. They both looked at me, watching as I picked up the broom. I fumbled with the hand, struggling to find a good way to hold it without aggravating my wounds. My headache was starting to evolve into a migraine. “I-I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I’d want to lose my head because I made a simple mistake such as adding one too many scoops of sugar in a cup of tea or because I planted white roses instead of red ones. Doing that again and again is how you lose your throne. Cut off too many heads, not only will you lose servants- everyone else will also rebel.”

The two stared at me, surprised. I blinked, alarmed.

Oh jeez. “I-um, I mean, you don’t want to serve under a person who will kill you if you make one little slip up, right? That… That would be pretty scary.”

“No, I get it.” The ginger shrugged, bringing a hand up and ruffling his hair. “That makes sense. Still, I think a strong leader is better than a meek one. Oh- I haven’t told you guys my name yet, have I? I’m Ace!” He smiled brightly. “A fresh-faced first year! It’s nice to meet’cha.”

Grim placed his hands on his hips. “I’m the genius who will become the greatest magician ever: Grim the Great! And this weakling over here is Eleanora. She’s my henchman.”

“I ain’t _no one’s_ henchman, thank you.” I scowled, smacking him lightly with the bottom of the broom. “Shove off. You’re helping _me_ clean the street, remember? Not the other way around.”

“That’s-!” He started, getting angry, but Ace cut him off. The teen folded his arms over his chest, frowning.

“Eleanora? That’s a weird name.”

“Well, gee, I think that’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.” I deadpanned, making a face. I smiled. “Nice too meet you, too. So, uh, what’s the deal with all these other statues? I’m guessing they’re all pretty important. Are the rest of them royalty?”

“Some.” Ace walked over, gesturing to the lion statue. The pounding in my skull only got worse when I saw the scar raking across the left eye of the animal. It… almost reminded me of that man from yesterday. Leona, I think it was? Huh. “This is the King of Beasts! He ruled over the savannah. And although he wasn’t born the first son and therefore was unable to actually _become_ king, he obtained the throne through hard effort and elaborate planning. After he became king, he even allowed the hated hyenas to live in his kingdom- tearing away the discrimination that followed behind them.”

“Ooooh!” Grim’s eyes went wide. “That’s incredible!”

“Right?” Ace turned to me, grinning. “And you? Any thoughts on this one?”

I hesitated. “Th-That’s, um…” I really wanted to vomit right now. Looking and talking about these statues is making me so nauseous. I observed the lion statue, trying to ignore the worsening feeling in my stomach. These statues were hauntingly familiar and something in my brain was trying to keep me from figuring it out. “I-If he wasn’t born to be king, what happened to the person who was?”

“Heehee~ who knows?” Ace snickered. I took a small step back, disturbed. “He isn’t the kind of guy to get held by notions of family and the like. Bonds are stronger than blood, after all. He was treated like crap for being the second prince, so he did whatever he could to get back at those people and take his rightful place on the throne. That’s pretty awesome, if you ask me.”

“I-I mean, I won’t disagree with the bonds being thicker than blood thing, but I don’t think murder is okay either…”

I have this horrible image in my head now of the lion letting the original king fall off of a cliff into some kind of stampede. Eugh. No thank you. Grim hummed and leaned over, looking at the other statues. “Who’s the octopus lady?”

“The Sea Witch. She lives in a dark cavern under the sea. Her purpose was to help unfortunate merfolk with their dreams and wishes, and as long as you paid the appropriate price she could help you do _anything._ Whether it be transforming your body, finding true love, or even getting rid of a rival! If it was within her power there was _nothing_ she couldn’t do. Although… there are stories of her prices being ridiculously high. She once took the voice of a mermaid princess to help her find her true love on land.”

Grim laughed loudly. “So what you’re saying is that if I become a great magician, I can get rich real easy!?”

“I don’t think that’s how it works.” I stated, looking down at him. It was so weird being taller than someone- even if it was a walking, talking cat monster. “Besides, how much you wanna bet something happened to the people who couldn’t pay the price?”

“Oooh~! Now you’re getting it!” Ace exclaimed, snapping his fingers at me. What? “The Sea Witch was an incredibly generous person, but if you tried to skip up on the payment? Oho, she’d turn nasty real quick! No one can back out of deal with her unless they want to be turned into shrimp! Or algae! Or something worse.”

...I really don’t like this place. All these statues so far have had something villainous and dark in their backstories, and this person seemed to be impressed by them. It’s… freaky.

“And this man over here-” Ace continued, startling me by grabbing my shoulder and dragging me over to the next statue. “-is the Sorcerer of the Sand! Look at how cool he is! He was the cunning vizier to a foolish sultan, and was the only person to see through a peasant’s disguise! They were trying to pretend to be a prince, you see? They wanted to win the heart of the sultan’s daughter and deceived everyone in order to do so. But then the Sorceror of the Sand got his hands on a magic lamp and became the most powerful mage of all, and through that power he was able to make himself sultan!”

He didn’t give me time to time to state an opinion. Ace dragged me away again, causing me to drop the broom. “Whoa!”

“Check out this guy! He looks like he’s on fire, right?”

“Uh, y-yeah…”

Grim shivered. “Just looking at him is giving me goosebumps.”

A huge grin spread across Ace’s face, and he held his free hand out to gesture dramatically at the statue. “The Lord of the Dead! King of the Underworld! Without anyone ever offering a hand, he rules over a land full of wandering souls and evil spirits. There’s no doubt he’s powerful. Even though he looks scary, he works such a detestable job without ever being able to take a vacation. His sincerity and dedication managed to win over and convince several incredible beasts to fight for him! The hydra, the titans… even a three-headed hellhound named Cerberus!”

Caged by this person’s arm, I didn’t have much choice but to look at the statue. The headache dulled a bit if I just focused on Ace’s explanation, but if I tried to think about anything else pertaining to the statues the throbbing in my skull would come back at full force. “...He seems friendly.”

Ace laughed. “He really is!”

Grim thought for a moment. “So being powerful doesn’t mean you get to be arrogant…?”

“I feel like he was totally arrogant though.”

“Haha, what do you know?” Ace released me and placed a hand on my head, aggressively ruffling my hair. I flinched and ducked down, but he just stuck me in another chokehold. “Anyway, we’ve got one more person to get through! This one is the best.”

He walked me over to the last statue. This one was a very majestic woman, with a long dress with torn hems, and horns protruding upwards from the top of her head. A long scepter was held in her hands, and at her feet were… thorns? Wow, I’ve never felt more connected to a statue. My last name involved a thorny flower, haha!

...One day someone other than me will appreciate my jokes. I tuned into the conversation when Ace started to speak, awe and admiration clear in his voice as he rambled on about this woman.

“The Witch of Thorns. She lived on the Magic Mountains. Even though the Great Seven are all powerful and intelligent, this person was the most skilled in magic and curses! She’s noble and elegant, and doesn’t forgive anyone who crosses her. She can summon lightning storms, cover an entire _country_ in thorns, and even place people into ageless sleep. Her magic is on a whole other level! There was even a time she transformed into a huge dragon!”

Wait, seriously?

“A dragon!?” Grim gasped. “Dragons are the monsters of all monsters!”

“They’re so cool~!” Ace cheered, pumping his free fist into the air. “Don’t you think?”

“Uh…” He was looking down at me again for a response. Frick. “Yeah. I-I think this lady might be my favorite? She’s very… majestic.”

Also the most familiar, alongside that fire dude, and my brain was tearing itself apart trying to understand why. Maybe it’s from yesterday? No, that wouldn’t make sense. I hadn’t seen them at all; only Grim did- from when he snuck in. Gods, what is wrong with me today? I don’t understand my brain at all.

“She is, she is!” Ace agreed, but then his expression shifted. His grin became something a little more… crooked. I almost thought I imagined it until he spoke, voice doing a complete tone swap. “Unlike a certain racoon dog.”

“Eh?” Grim’s ears twitched and he looked up. Ace released me, the teen stumbling back and pressing a hand to his mouth.

“Pfft…! Ahaha! I can’t hold it in anymore! Bwahaha!” He broke out into laughter, red eyes a little crazed as he snorted, struggling to speak. “A-Aren’t you the guys that… that went crazy during the entrance ceremony? Haha… man, I can’t even-! You got summoned by the Mirror of Darkness, but can’t use magic! And your little friend wasn’t invited, but trespassed anyway! Ahahaha! Ahhh, it took everything I had not to lose it at the ceremony…”

He wiped at his face, feeling tears trying to form.

“To top it all off, you’re a freaking girl!” His chuckles died down a little, the majority of his amusement out of his system. “A magicless girl who’s now stuck as the school janitor, pfft! So lame. You guys are such a joke.”

“Um, wow. Okay.” I frowned, folding my arms over my chest. “Rude. Who cares if I can’t use magic?”

“Who cares-? Bwahaha! You’re hilarious!”

Grim was about to rage. “You little…”

“I can’t believe you didn’t even know about the Great Seven!” Ace sneered. “How ignorant can you be? You should go back to kindergarten before even dreaming of coming here to Night Raven College!”

I raised my eyebrows and leaned my head back, shifting all of my weight onto my right foot. “Excuse me? I’ll have you know I’ve already done-gone graduated! Your “mirror” was the one that brought me here. I wanted nothing to do with this place! Secondly, I’m not from here so I ain’t gonna know anything about it. So shove it, mister.”

“Ehhh? Ahaha! That’s even worse! You’re like a baby!”

I could hear Grim growling in the background. “Says the brat. Grim- come on. Let’s hurry up and finish cleaning before…”

I trailed off, seeing his face. Grim was about to blow a fuse. Ace wasn’t shutting up either.

“Maaan,” He sighed, “I thought I’d mess with you guys just a little bit, but you really blew away my expectations! But anyway, unlike you guys I actually have classes, so do your best to keep this school squeaky clean. Okay?”

...I was the adult here. I’m not a functional adult by any means, but I’m still considered one back in my world. Therefore I was not going to get annoyed. I am calmness and tranquility. And I was _not_ going to let him have the last word in this conversation. “I’ll do you one better!” I said, flashing him a beaming smile. “If I ever have to mop or scrub the floors, I’ll make sure to do it _riiiight_ where you walk, so that way _you_ can be squeaky clean too!”

He blinked, watching as the sweet smile dropped into a cold blank stare.

“You know,” I shrugged, detesting how much this was already feeling like my school years, “after you’ve fallen flat on your face.”

There were bullies no matter where you went. Most of the people at work back home were wonderful, save for that one arrogant part-timer who thought they were the greatest thing since sliced bread and tried to shove all of their work to you. Ace reminded me of that person. “Are you threatening me?”

“Hm? Me, threaten someone?” I shook my head incredulously, pretending to be offended by such a question. “I thought we already decided that I was harmless? Or was it useless? Honestly, it’s hard to keep track with all the self-loathing sometimes.”

He snorted. “Whatever.”

Ace turned around, walking off. I clicked my tongue against my teeth as he did so, staring coldly at his back, before marching over to pick up my discarded broom. I hope he caught fire in his magic classes. Not completely or for very long, but just enough for him to learn a little something about karma. It was a jerk and it was going to be coming for him one way or another. Just as it did to Grim, it would do to him.

Hopefully, anyway.

I sighed, “I hate people…”

“Yeah, well I hate _him._ He’s pissing me off.” Grim flexed his claws, baring his fangs. “He thinks he can say all that and then just walk away? Uh-uh. That creep needs to pay.”

“Give it time.” I yawned. “He’ll get what’s coming eventually. You shouldn’t waste your breath on someone like him; trust me, the oxygen loss isn’t worth it.” Hm? No laugh? Jeez, no one appreciates my humor around here. I glanced at Grim, eyebrows furrowing when I saw little specks of flame drift out from his mouth. “Dude… whatever you’re thinking- please don’t.”

“He made fun of me! I’m not gonna let that slide!”

“Grim, no-!”

It was too late. Blue flames shot out from his mouth and Ace yelped, narrowly dodging the blast. “What the hell are you doing!?” He stepped back, watching as the flames dispersed. Grim stepped forward, tail swishing back-and-forth angrily.

“It’s what you get for making fun of me!” He declared. “I’m gonna light that head of yours on fire!”

You will _not_ be doing that, you little gremlin cat. I held the broom out and rushed forward, swinging it between them in a foolish attempt to break up the fight that was about to occur. “Nope, no! No, we’re not! We’re not doing anything of that sort! Grim, back off!” I nearly dropped the broom as my hands cried out, lungs aching from all the shouting and movement. The bristle end of the broom bounced against the ground, my chest heaving as I wheezed. “We… We are not attacking… a hecking student! That is not how we do things!”

“Back off! I’ve gotta teach this kid a lesson!”

“Ehh?” Ace placed a hand on his hip, ignoring me as he focused on the cat monster. “You’ve got a lot of nerve challenging me. I’ll turn you into a fluffy toy poodle!”

I’m gonna smack ‘em both upside the head, I swear. “I said _stop_ it! You’re both… gonna get into trouble! Are you idiots!?”

Ace rolled his eyes and pulled out a small pen- one I recognized being near identical to what Azul and Riddle had used yesterday during the ceremony to catch Grim. This one was red. “Shut up. No one cares.” What? Oh _frick-!_ My eyes went wide as my feet suddenly left the ground, a huge gust of wind suddenly blowing me back as he waved the pen. I cried out, crashing hard onto the ground and rolling for a few feet.

“Whoa, is there a fight going on?”

“C’mon, kick that monster’s ass!”

“Who’s that person on the ground?”

People that were walking by to reach the school for their classes suddenly started to gather, chatting the background curiously and cheering on the violence. Ace grinned, swinging the pen around. “Come on, monster, is that all you’ve got!?”

“Fnaaagh!”

Heat filled the air from the flames Grim sent pouring forwards. I cringed and gasped, struggling to recollect my bearing after having been so cruelly winded. Damn it, it hurts… everything burns. My skull had finally stopped pounding too, the jerk! I brought the respirator up to my face and breathed in it for a few moments, trying to catch my breath, and blinked furiously as I felt the familiar sting of tears in my eyes.

“Beat ‘em up!”

I glared at the bystanders, hearing them chant out encouragement. Seriously? I dropped the mask back around my neck and stood on my feet, staggering sideways over to a statue for a moment. Once I had my balance, I picked up the broom. Everything… is going to be fine.

I’ll make it so.

Watching the fight take place it was clear that Ace was using some sort of wind magic, constantly redirecting Grim’s attacks. He twisted them upwards into the air, high in the sky, leaving himself unscathed. Unfortunately, flames were spewing everywhere now as Grim was getting frustrating. “Y-You both…” I wheezed, stepping forward. “You both are _total_ idiots!”

“Shut up!” Ace snapped.

“Stay out of this!” Grim demanded.

Flames and wind came hurling at me together. My eyes went wide and I brought my arms up, trying to shield my face, but the wind wound up changing the course of the fire. While the heat was incredibly intense and I could still feel it, causing me to cough a bit, the attack had twisted and soared overhead, avoiding me at the last second.

H-Holy frick…

Wow. Um, I don’t really know if Ace did that on purpose or if he was actually trying to hit me too, but he just saved my life. So- I’m gonna hope he does actually have a nicer side to him and pray that this fighting will end soon. But… if it doesn’t stop and the headmaster finds out then…! Then..! Oooh, what do I do? I might get burned to a crisp if I try to get close. Maybe Ace will redirect the wind again if that happens…?

No, that’s being _too_ hopeful. Frick. Uuugh, I wish these people would stop egging them on! The fighting won’t ever stop at this rate, damn it. Freaking heck… this is such a mess. I picked up the broom again, squeezing my eyes shut and accepting my fate. Then I charged. Forcing my body to move I did the most stupid thing someone could in my position and ran, swinging the broom towards Ace.

The teen’s eyes went wide and he stumbled back. “Whoa! Hey, what are you doing!?”

“Getting you to _behave!”_

The end of the broom clattered to the ground and I hunched over, wheezing and gasping, focusing a glare at Grim next and then at Ace again.

“I’m gonna… I’m gonna beat you both if you don’t grow up already! You’re acting… like little kids!” I staggered over to the cat monster, dragging the broom behind me as I did so, and fell to my knees. “G-Grim, you… you wanna study magic, right? S-So let’s finish… let’s finish cleaning and then… you can do that. Okay? You can… study all the magic.”

Grim glared at Ace from the side before hissing at me, folding his arms over his chest. “I hate you.”

A weak smile graced my face and I chuckled. “Aww… I hate you, too, pal. Gosh, l-look at… how much we have in common! Who… would’ve thought?” I shakily stood, nearly falling over and waving my free arm to try and regain my balance. I let out a breathy sigh. “Let’s… Let’s go now, shall we?”

“What?” Ace sneered, seeing us start to walk away. “Running away? Cowards. Don’t challenge me to a duel if you’re gonna back off!”

“Cowards!?” Grim did not like that. My reaction time was all too slow as the cat monster opened his mouth wide, facing Ace and letting out the largest spew of flames yet. “That’s it! Fgnaaaagh!” 

No, no, no! This is bad, this is really really bad! I stepped back, holding the broom close as the battle took place once more.

Ace laughed, red eyes filled with amusement. “Let’s see, if I change the trajectory of the flame with my wind like this~ ahaha! You missed! Wait… oh no.” Ace almost dropped the pen he was using as a wand. “Th-The Queen of Heart’s statue is-!”

Charred. The top half was burnt black. Not a single trace of that snobbish smile could be seen. The bad feeling in my stomach sunk, taking my heart along with it, and I stood there- letting the broom fall for the last time. I told the headmaster that nothing would happen today. I promised I would keep Grim in line. And now… now the statue is…

“I-It’s because you blew my fire around!” Grim exclaimed, hurriedly placing the blame on Ace. “You should’ve just let me roast you!”

I’m going to lose my place in the dorm. I won’t have anywhere to go. I’m going to be stuck here, abandoned, left on the streets, in a completely unknown world without anyone to rely on. I won’t survive. I’m… I’m completely screwed.

Ace sent a glare towards Grim. “You seriously think I would just let you do that? Who in their right mind would stand still and let themselves get roasted, huh? No one!”

I have no way to get out of this mess.

My lips curled back and I choked, shoulders starting to shake as all the pent up emotions bubbled their way up to the surface once more. “I-I hate this... “

First I get kidnapped and brought to another world. Upon awakening, I get attacked by an evil cat monster. Then I’m forced to live in a dusty old building covered in mold, cobwebs, and bugs, with several murderous ghosts for roommates. After that I wind up being stuck trying to babysit the same monster who attacked me earlier in my awakening, and now that monster is picking fights with students and destroying important statues after promising _very specifically_ to not cause a scene.

“I hate this so much…”

It’s all over. I want to go home. I don’t want to deal with any of this. These people, these monsters, this stupid school- I hated all off it. Tears stinging my eyes as I reeled my head back, I proceed to glare at the ground, crying out in frustration and hurt,

“I hate _all_ of you! Y-You’re all jerks!”

I don’t care if I’m magicless. All I care about is finding a way home and the only way to do that is to get this job done so I can head to the library and study up on all the books there! But no- obviously that’s the _easy_ way and I’m not allowed to do things the easy way, because the world doesn’t work like that. You have to be put through trial after trial. So I’m going to wind up in these awful situations again and again and again, and it’s never going to end, and the headmaster is going to kick me out, and I’m screwed, and it’s all these idiots’ faults for picking fights with each other!

“Wh-Why are you crying!?” Ace exclaimed, alarmed. “The heck is wrong with you?”

“Human?” Grim asked. I grit my teeth together and sniffled, bringing an arm up to my face and wiping at it with my sleeve. The tears wouldn’t stop falling. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

I-I need to stop. I need to calm down. I’m too stressed out.

Having a breakdown now is only going to make my lungs worse.

The people in the background finally stopped whispering, growing silent. Ace and Grim approached me, actually having the nerve to look _somewhat_ concerned after what they pulled, and the ginger awkwardly held a hand out. “Seriously, why are you crying? You scared of violence or something? I didn’t hurt you _that_ bad with the spell earlier.”

I pulled back, avoiding his hand. Ace blinked. Through all the tears I stared up at him coldly, jaw clenched tight as I kept myself from speaking.

That was when we heard it. Headmaster Crowley’s voice.

“Just what is going on here!?”

Grim and Ace wasted no time in leaving me to run off, attempting to get to safety in order to escape his rage. Headmaster Crowley didn’t let them get very far, marching up and lashing out with his whip. It hit their legs and knocked them down, and he walked past me to approach them, hitting the ground near them when they tried to scramble away. His golden eyes were alight with fury.

Grim let out a whimper. “I-It hurts just as much as yesterday…”

“This is my whip-of-love!” Headmaster Crowley declared angrily. “It’ll be another hundred years before you can even dream of outrunning me! How dare you two cause such trouble on the first day of school? Didn’t I just warn you to not cause any trouble!? Why is one of the Great Seven statues charred?”

“Th-That’s…” Ace hesitated.

“You rebellious student; I would like very much to see you expelled!”

His red eyes went wide. “W-Wait! Please, not that! Anything but that!”

“Hmph! And you- Miss Quince!” Headmaster Crowley whirled around. He lashed the whip to the side this time, causing me to flinch back. “Explain the meaning of all this! You were supposed to keep Grim in line.”

I did try to. I really did.

“You can not call this “supervising”!”

I know. I’m… fully aware that I screwed up. I know. I had finally calmed Grim down, but then Ace went and antagonized him again. I was too slow to stop him from breathing more flame. If I had been faster, if I wasn’t so tired from all the movement, then…! No. There’s no justifying this. I did what I could and still failed. I was utterly useless in that situation. There was no way I could have stopped the two from fighting. I hung my head head low, hands shaking and head throbbing with pain.

“I-I’m sorry…” My lungs were burning inside my chest, cursing me for abusing them. “I-I’m so sorry.”

He stared at me for a long while before sighing. “My goodness…” Headmaster Crowley moved his gaze away to the others, focusing on the teenager. “You; what is your grade and name?”

“A-Ace Trappola. First year.”

“Hmph. Then as punishment for helping burn the statue, you are to help Miss Quince and Grim here with their duties after class. Together you all will clean one hundred windows. Is that understood, Mr. Trappola?”

W-Wait. Hold on. It took my brain a few seconds to process that. “I’m… not kicked out?”

Ace looked horrified. “W-Wait, seriously? I have to clean, too? That’s so lame!”

“One hundred- _blegh!”_ Grim shook his head. He scowled. “It’s been nothing but misery since yesterday.”

Headmaster Crowley ignored their complaints, focusing his intense stare on Ace. “After class you will meet them in the cafeteria. Is that _understood_ , Mr. Trappola?”

“...Fine…” Ace sighed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ace has arrived~! :D


	5. The Headmaster's Wrath

I paced anxiously in the library, waving my arms in front of me as I thought. It only took another hour for me and Grim to finish sweeping the street, so we had plenty of time to relax in the library until lunch. And during that time the monster was running about trying to find all the books on magic that he could, while I spent my time walking through aisle after aisle unable to figure out what it was I needed to be looking for.

There wasn’t exactly a research guide I could go to for this sort of thing.

_Misplaced in another dimension? Summoned to another world? Don’t worry, call now and you can get your own survival kit and a pamphlet with all sorts of advice for just 19.99! If you’re extra lucky, there might be a magic crystal inside you can use to get you back home!_

I made a face and stuck my tongue out slightly, observing the many shelves that filled the room. This was undoubtedly the biggest library I’ve ever seen. I still can’t believe the headmaster was letting me stay…

I came to a halt, closing my eyes and inhaling deeply. I got seriously lucky.

Either that or he really was ridiculously kind.

 _Maybe I should look into teleportation?_ That would be a place to start. _I was pretty much teleported, right? I don’t really get how, but it wound up with me being stuck inside that coffin, so…_

It was worth a shot.

…

I hunched over and groaned, defeated. I was currently sitting on the ground surrounded by at least ten to twelve different books, but none of them made any sense. Worst was the fact that they had absolutely nothing to do with my situation. I ended up being forced to put everything back and afterwards I dragged myself over to the table where Grim was at, the cat monster looking quite bored himself just from reading.

He probably wanted do some learning that involved him actually casting spells. There goes that one bargaining chip I had over him… frick. I’m going to have to find some other way to talk him down from fighting if the library won’t work anymore. I sighed, sliding into a chair and burrowing my face in my arms. This was so awful.

“I wanna make things go _boom_ ,” I heard Grim mutter, “not just read text…”

Wow, how on earth did I ever figure _that_ one out? Tch.

Several more hours passed, with me making a couple more attempts at research, before lunch time came. The school was paying for my meals since it was their fault I was here, as the cooks so kindly told me, so I didn’t have to worry too much about expenses in that area. I did feel a bit guilty about it, but on the bright side it was one less thing I had to worry about. And, something I found very interesting, was the fact that the cafeteria menu and layout was a lot different from the schools I was used to back home. The schools I went to had a designated menu for the day and you had a choice to eat one of two main items, but here it was designed more like a buffet?

You could just walk up and take what you wanted, pay for it all, and then eat. Any assortment of food. There were different sandwiches and soups and even desserts. I didn’t care much for sweets so I avoided them, but the rest? I grabbed a fair amount of food to eat, excited to try something different for once, and I squinted my eyes when I saw the absolute mountain Grim had piled onto his tray.

Greedy cat. Here’s to hoping I don’t have to pay the school back later…

“Where should we sit?” The monster asked me, surprising me. He was being oddly civil. I blinked, glancing at the large crowd filling the room.

“Uhh…” Students ranging from first year to third year were eating, all taking their lunch break at the same time. Weird. Also too many people for me to deal with. One would think they would have separate lunch times, what with how many students there are. I guess that’s why the cafeteria is so big. Is there a trash can nearby I can hide next to? “That’s a... good question, Grim.”

“Oooh~ look! That seat over there is free! I’m taking it!”

“H-Hey, wait-!” Too late. He was already dashing off. “Oh boy…”

I balanced the tray on my arms and slumped my shoulders, fighting another sigh as I followed after. My hair was going to turn white in no time thanks to this little creature. I watched as he took a seat at an empty table, and I was just about to follow when suddenly someone approached him. I faltered, already sensing the argument that was about to take place as Grim opened his mouth.

“What do you want? I found this seat first! Geh- you’re that guy who put that weird collar on me before!”

Wait, what? Oh! Now that he mentions it, he does look a bit like that person from yesterday- it was harder to recognize him without the robe. I took a quick second to hope that nothing horrible would come from this interaction and then slid on over, pushing myself in front of Grim and flashing a bright smile at the redhead. Wait a second, is he… the same height as me? Oh wow. Someone isn’t taller than me for once. Huh. Frick yeah!

Anyway, “Heyyy~ how are you today~?”

The boy turned his stern gaze to me, folding his arms over his chest. He had already sat his tray down on the table Grim had his sights set on. “You are…?”

I brightened my smile. “Eleanora Quince! It’s nice to meet you.”

His gaze flickered from my face to the way I was holding the tray, taking note of the bandages on my hands. He then looked at Grim. Pieces of a puzzle were clicking together in his mind. “I see. You’re that girl from the entrance ceremony. And you- can you knock that off? Calling someone’s _unique magic_ aweird collar is rude.”

“S-Sorry about him.” I apologized. “He… sort of lacks, um, what would you call it…? M… Manners? Yeah. I’m trying to keep him in line, but it doesn’t always work.”

“Hmph.” The boy raised a hand to his chin. “You should be stricter with the discipline. Cut the heads off of those who don’t listen.” Oh gods, he’s obsessed with the statues too, isn’t he? Please don’t hurt me. “Ah, but I haven’t even introduced myself yet, have I? Riddle Rosehearts. Dorm Leader of Heartslabyul, second year. Might I ask what you’re doing in the school? Why has the headmaster not returned you to your home?”

“Th-That’s…”

“She can’t go back!” Grim answered, glaring at Riddle. “She’s stuck here because that stupid mirror chose her even though she can’t use magic, and summoned her from another world. So now we have to work as dumb janitors!”

He blinked. “Is that so? You... have my condolences. I wasn’t aware other worlds existed.”

I gave a weak laugh. “I wasn’t either.”

Riddle frowned. “Well, in that case- if you have any questions about this place don’t shy away. Although you are not a student... it is my responsibility as a dorm leader to help the others in this school. I’m sure it will take some adjusting to get used to.”

“Thank you!” I smiled. He was a lot nicer than I was expecting, albeit a little… intense. “Again, I’m really sorry about Grim. We’ll go find somewhere else to sit. Sorry.”

“Wha-!? Human, what are you doing?” The cat monster was not happy.

Riddle shook his head. “It’s fine. You may sit where you wish. I was merely curious as to why the monster was here.”

“Yeah~ he’s my, uh, protection against ghosts?”

He raised an eyebrow.

“The dorm I’m staying in is kinda haunted.”

“Ah.”

“Yup.” This is awkward. I gestured to the table with my chin. “Well, I’m… gonna go eat now. You can join us if you want! Granted you probably already have friends you wanna eat with, so feel free to ignore our existence.”

Riddle stared for a moment and then sighed, the smallest of smiles playing in his lips. “I might as well. I already set my tray down. I can tell you more about the school as we eat. It isn’t often that others ask me to join them, anyway. Trey will understand.”

Trey? Who’s that? Probably a friend. “O-Oh. Thanks.”

He smiled, taking a seat. “You’re very polite. That is good. Ah, where shall I start first…? I suppose you don’t really need to know about the classes as you are not attending them, so… yes. The school store. It sells all sorts of items, so I’m sure you’ll be wanting to head there some time. It’s run by a man called Sam. I can show you where it’s at after school is over, if you’d like, as I do not have any prior engagements today.”

“Really?” Wow, this guy was nice. I got a little excited, hoping I might be able to make a friend in this place, before realization hit me and I lowered my head. “I… I would love to, but Grim and some guy named Ace got me in trouble earlier. So I can’t.”

“That wasn’t my fault!” Grim defended, raising his voice. “That jerk kept making fun of me!”

I scowled and reached over, bopping him on the head with my arm. “You don’t go attacking people! What are you, three? Bullies bully because they want a rise out of you! You ignore them and they might leave you alone. Better yet, be nice to them. It freaks them out.”

“You should have swept faster! Then we wouldn’t have encountered him!”

I rolled my eyes, pulling away and grabbing my drink with a small wince. “I’m not doing this.”

“By trouble…” Riddle narrowed his eyes, leaning over and propping his chin up with the palm of his hand. “Are you perhaps referring to the statue that got charred this morning?”

There was no hiding the cringe. I bit my lip and lowered my mouth to the straw in my glass, taking a long sip of my iced tea. Grim sunk into his seat and folded his arms, making a face. I sat up, a bit unnerved by the redhead’s stare. He clearly was a stickler for good behavior.

“It’s… a bit of a long story.”

Riddle tapped his gloves fingers against the table, frowning. “Then make it short.”

…

He was not happy when I explained the situation. He became even more upset when Grim piped into the conversation, trying to justify his behavior when he only made things worse. Riddle told the cat monster that if he wasn’t already being forced to clean windows after school, he would personally “cut off his head” again.

That saying confused me.

“Off with your head,” He said, “is my _unique magic._ It cuts off any magic flow and prevents the user from casting spells. They essentially wind up just like you- magicless.”

“Oh.”

“It’s awfuuul!” Grim whined. “It’s like having a limb chopped off! I couldn’t use my flames at all after he did that.”

I took another drink of my tea, unsympathetic. “Then don’t attack people.”

“Why you~!”

Riddle stood, grasping his empty food tray as he resided to leave. So soon? There were still about fifteen or so minutes left of lunch. “You could stand to be a little more strict, but the fact that you are not turning a blind eye to his behavior is good. Keep it up. You’ll make a fine janitor yet. Good day.”

“Thanks? A-And, uh, good day...”

I have no idea what was that was, but okay.

After lunch ended we went back to library. I wandered aimlessly, defeated and distraught, wondering if I would ever be able to go home. It was starting to seem hopeless. I hoped Headmaster Crowley was having better luck trying to find information, because I wasn’t getting anywhere.

Grim passed out at the library table and I sat next to him, flipping through pages mindlessly. The only upside to all this is that I was finally able to start breathing normally again. The library was so quiet and peaceful, with hardly anyone in it, so the only thing that could really stress me out was if Grim misbehaved again.

That and… the fact that I’m not _finding any freaking info_ on this situation _._

I face-planted into the table, forehead bumping against the wood.

There were still at least two hours before school ended and we would have to go to the cafeteria to meet up with Ace. Time was passing by so slowly... I found myself falling asleep mid-study of a random spell book. It had been my last resort, seeing as I myself couldn’t use magic, but I figured that if magic was what got me here then it could get me back. But so far there had been nothing and I found all motivation being drained from my being. Why, if the school bell wasn’t so loud there was a good chance I might not have woken up. I was so bored.

And now, having left the library and entered the cafeteria, Ace was nowhere to be seen. I eyed all the windows within the room, dreading this detention. In all my years I only had detention once, which was back in elementary school, and that was because I talked too much on a day where we had a substitute teacher. I’ve never broken school rules, I’ve never gotten into fights, I always finished my homework, but now…

“This sucks...”

“Mmhmm.” Grim agreed, leaning over in his seat. “One hundred windows is too harsh a punishment.”

“We wouldn’t even be here if you didn’t _attack_ someone. This is gonna be rough...”

“Aw, shut up.” The cat monster crossed his arms, scowling as he looked around the room. “That Ace guy is taking his time getting here… damn it! He’s trying to piss me off again, isn’t he? Who does he think he is?”

I sent Grim a look, tired of his behavior. “Down kitty. Behave.”

“I’m not a cat! I’m a monster.”

“You’re literally a cat monster.”

“I’ll bite you again.”

“And then I’ll kick you.” I retorted. I leaned back against the table, yawning. “Let’s just wait for him. He probably got lost; it’s the first day of school, after all.”

“...”

“...”

“H-He definitely got lost.” I stammered, eyes flickering nervously to the clock on the wall. It’s been ten minutes. “Just a little longer.”

“...”

Grim was starting to look annoyed. It was now twenty minutes past the bell.

“...”

“...”

Yeah, no, he’s not lost. My eye twitched and I sat up straight, jaw clenching in irritation. Ace was half of the reason that I got into trouble and was told to be here, and he wasn’t going to show up? Grim seemed to share my thoughts. “That jerk is skipping out on us, isn’t he?”

I stood, pulling the plague mask onto my face to hide my darkening expression. “So it would seem.”

Normally I loathed confrontation and arguments, but this was the last straw. My patience has been running thin since the moment I’ve been brought to this place and each insane event just made it wear out faster. I was done. Grim swished his tail, bearing his sharp teeth in a grin. “I’m not gonna let that jerk get away with putting all of the punishment on us… c’mon! We’re gonna catch him and make him do all the windows!”

If I could flex my fingers and crack my knuckles, I would do so. Grim hopped onto my shoulder, his weight momentarily making me lose balance, but then I regained my composure and glared at the doors, starting to walk. “What’s an appropriate song reference for this manhunt…?”

Ace can’t be too far. Everyone lives on campus within their dorms, so he has to be somewhere nearby. Grim and I checked the hallways and the classrooms, and I even had Grim head into the boys bathroom to look for Ace. But he was nowhere to be found. “I’m gonna kill him!” Grim shouted. “The nerve of this guy- ugh! I won’t let him keep skipping like this!”

I glared down the empty hallway. “We’ll get him eventually- one way or another.”

“Is something wrong?” Whoa! Random person alert. I whirled around in alarm, hearing an unfamiliar voice, and I blinked up at the person standing before us. He had blue eyes and midnight hair, with a black spade painted over his right eye. He wore a uniform similar to Riddle and Ace’s. “You look lost- _gah!_ Wh-What’s with that creepy mask!?”

“Huh? Oh! Oh, sorry.” I removed it, letting it dangle from around my neck. “Helps me breathe. Who are you?”

“D-Deuce…” He answered, slowly lowering his hands when he saw I was not a threat. “Deuce Spade. Why are you wearing your ceremonial robes?”

Frick. Okay. “Because I have literally nothing else to wear since I’m not a student. I’m Eleanora, by the way. Eleanora Quince. The little grouchy gremlin here is Grim.” I gestured to the monster, who looked less than impressed with the introduction. “We’re the new super fancy side janitors. Um, this is gonna sound weird, but have you seen someone come through here? Red eyes, has a heart on his face…?”

Deuce tilted his head, bringing a hand up to his chin. “That… sounds familiar. Is his hair orange?”

Holy frick- _yes!_ I beamed, stepping forward and holding my hands up, pressing my palms together as gently as I could. “That’s him! You know him?”

“Yes. We have classes together.”

Oh, whatever higher beings exist in this universe, thank you for finally showing me mercy! This person is a freaking angel. “D… Do you know where he is? He’s supposed to help us clean windows!”

Deuce furrowed his eyebrows. “How come?”

“Because he and this little guy destroyed a statue. It’s a long story.”

His eyes went wide and he took a step back. “That was you guys!?”

“He was making fun of me!” Grim defended. “He’s a jerk! But now he’s trying to skip out on cleaning duty. That headmaster is gonna come at us with his whip-of-love again if we don’t get it done…”

“I-I can’t believe he got detention on the first day…” Deuce looked disturbed. He shook his head, clearing his throat, and offered a small smile. “If it would help, I could help you search for him? There’s a good chance he might have went back to the dorms.”

Forget everyone else; this dude right here is my favorite person. “Yes, please!” I exclaimed, more than happy to have found at least one ray of light in this world of darkness. I held my arms out in a dramatic act, showing off my gratitude in the weirdest way possible. “You’re an absolute angel!”

He looked a bit embarrassed to be called such a thing. “I-I’m just glad I can help. Here, the dorms are this way, Mr. Quince.”

I was so happy I completely missed the way he addressed me. Grim raised a brow and looked down at me, seeing the way I followed our new acquaintance, before rolling his eyes and swishing his tail. “At least we’re making progress.” He grouched.

Deuce led us through the school hallways to the courtyard, where we made our way behind the east building. The air quality was so wonderful here. Was it because of all the trees? Maybe pollution wasn’t that big of a deal here since magic existed. I hoped that was the case. Hold up- that could be why my lungs aren’t as bad as they usually are? I haven’t been able to use any of my medicine so…

No. That wouldn’t make sense. If something did happen it would have had to have been done in the process of my being kidnapped. And we have no way to prove if that was an actual thing.

Talk about lame.

“Whoa…” We followed Deuce through the entrance and entered a hall of mirrors. There were several purple arches with large mirrors seeming to act almost as portals, all with their own unique frame and design. I guess they were all based off the statues. The ones I found most interesting were the dragon mirror and the underwater one. Standing beside a mirror decorated with cards and roses was a familiar first year. “Ah- there!”

“Heeeey you!” Grim shouted, leaping off of my shoulder and sending me stumbling back from the force. I yelped, tripping over my feet and crashing hard on my rear. Deuce jumped, having not expected that. “Get back here!”

Ace’s eyes went wide, looking at us from over his shoulder. “Y-You guys found me…!”

“Catch him!” I shouted at the monster, in the process of getting back on my feet. “D-Don’t let him get away!”

“Freaking jerk- you really think I would let you escape!?” Grim demanded of the student. “While I’m forced to help this sickly human clean!? Not a chance!”

“As if I’d just stand here and let you catch me! I’m out!” Ace rushed towards the mirror.

Oh, no you don’t! I wasted no time in scrambling over, knowing full well I was going to regret it later, and lunged. Grim latched onto the teen’s hair while I bodyslammed Ace, wrapping my arms around his waist and curling a leg around his knee. The boy shouted as he fell, and a pained cry escaped my lips as his back landed hard onto my hands. Frick, frick, frick-!

_It hurts!_

I placed a knee on his stomach, trying to keep him pinned despite the position I was stuck in. Tears were stinging my eyes. “You’re not getting away!”

“G-Get off!” He thrust his arm out- sitting up slightly and pushing me off. I rolled over, cringing and bringing my throbbing hands up to my chest. Grim pulled at Ace’s hair, the teeth struggling to get him off and grabbing at his tail. “Let go of me, you freak!”

“Never! I want to skip out, too, you know!”

I coughed, wheezing as I watched Ace stand. I hate this kid so much. Grim let out a yell as he was thrown off of Ace and the ginger whirled around, making a beeline for the building entrance. He seemed to have give up on heading to the dorms. He pushed past Deuce, nearly knocking the blue-haired teen over. “Outta of my way!”

“H-Hey! Darn you…! You should take responsibility for your actions!” He watched as Ace fumbled to open the door, pulling a pen out of his pocket. “Ugh, what’s a good spell…? Should I freeze his legs? No, conjure a rope! Um…”

“Who cares!” Grim snapped, pushing himself up. “Just catch him!”

“R-Right! Um… let’s see…”

Ace’s eyes lit up when he got the door open.

“Anything works, so come on out- _heavy object!”_

Those eyes, however, soon lost their excitement when they saw a large shadow get casted over them, and Ace looked up in horror just in time to see a large cauldron falling his way. “Gaaaah!” He crumpled to the ground, cradling his wounded head in his hands. “Ow, ow, ow~! What the heck is that- a pot!?”

Grim burst out into manic laughter. I blinked, staring blearily at the sight and wondering what just happened. “How does it feel being flattened like a pancake!?” Grim teased. “Great, huh? You’re so lame.”

“I-I think I overdid it...” Deuce stammered, bringing a hand up to his chin. “Ah! Mr. Quince, are you alright?”

“Huh? O-Oh, uh, yeah.” I blinked, seeing him kneel down beside me. “Wait, what’d you say?”

“I asked if you were-”

“No, I meant-”   
  


Ace interrupted with his grumbling, rubbing his head. “Man, that hurts… what the heck is wrong with you guys?” He glared at me. “You should be fine even without me! It’s just a hundred windows.”

“Y-You’re… joking, right?” I asked, struggling to stand. Deuce placed a hand on my shoulder, helping to steady me. “I doubt… I’ll be able… to do more than twenty on my own. Besides, the… headmaster ordered it, so…”

“What is the story behind all this anyway?” Deuce inquired, frowning. He looked down at me. “You said it was a long one, but…”

Ace huffed. “Fine, I’ll tell you. Basically I got into a fight with this furball over here-” He jabbed a thumb in Grim’s direction, “-and the Queen of Hearts’ statue got a _liiiittle_ bit singed.”

“Y-You damaged one of the Great Seven!?” Deuce was horrified. “I thought it was just a regular statue that got messed up! No wonder you got such a severe punishment. Getting into a prestigious school and causing so much trouble on the first day…” He shook his head. “You should know better.”

“Shut up.” The ginger hissed. “Who the heck are you, anyway? What are you doing here?”

“You’ve forgotten?” Deuce looked offended. “Deuce Spade. We’re in the same class. Anyway, if you were ordered by the headmaster to help the janitor clean, you need to take it seriously.”

Oh my gods. He is laying into Ace so hard right now. Thank you. This person is a blessing, I swear. I watched with immense satisfaction as Ace ruffled his hair, giving in to defeat. “Fine, fine, I’ll do it. Jeez. Let’s just get it over with…” Wait. Hold on- something isn’t right. My irritation is only being directed towards one person right now.

I narrowed my eyes, looking around the room. “Where’s Grim?”

Ace jumped. “He’s gone!”

I thought he was being strangely quiet. Damn it. I groaned, burying my face in my arm. “I’m so done with today…”

“That stupid cat~!” Ace was fuming. “He made me take his place! Oi, Juice!”

The blue-haired teen was not happy. “Juice-? It’s _Deuce!_ “Deu”!”

Ace smacked his arm. “You’re partly responsible for this, so help me catch him!”

“And why should I do that?” He demanded, crossing his arms. These two were not getting along at all. “I only helped because you were causing trouble for the school’s new staff member!”

“That new “staff member” is a deadweight that can’t use magic!” Ace retorted. “So let’s go! Hurry it up before that gremlin gets away!”

Deuce glanced down at me for a moment, and sighed. “Fine. But only to help Mr. Quince.”

“Mister?” Ace snorted. “That janitor next to you is a chick.”

“Eh?” Deuce blinked. He whirled around to face me, eyes wide. “Ehhhhh!?”

Not knowing what else to do, I gave a tired smile and waved at him. “Hello. Female here.” He looked so shaken; it was adorable. “Thanks for the help.”

As his poor brain was still processing this information Ace wrapped an arm around his shoulders, dragging him away and out of the building. I lowered my hand and inhaled, steadying my breathing, before following behind at a much slower pace. These two had fairly long legs since they were so tall and ran just as fast, and since I was merely walking they wound up leaving me behind in the dust in no time. Gods, how I wanted to be able to run like that…

Seriously, what was Grim thinking? I did not understand that monster at all.

Sure, he really wanted to be a student here; I got that much. But he refused to study for it and was only further trying to risk the headmaster’s rage by skipping cleaning duties when he was _literally_ put in charge as a janitor. Does he not think? Is there no brain in that skull of his? I really hoped nothing bad happens because of this…

The last time Grim and Ace threw down a statue got burned. Now we have a third member, Deuce, and while he seemed a lot nicer and more grounded than those two I worried he might get carried along with their shenanigans. It was wonderful he was so willing to help out earlier, but… I don’t want him to get into trouble because I couldn’t keep Grim in line again.

_Why am I so bad at this?_

Grim really is such a brat. I sighed and tied my mask back on.

Listening for their voices I found myself wandering through the courtyard and school corridors, until I finally wound up at the cafeteria. Grim was dangling from a chandelier, snickering and taunting the two boys from above. “Nyahaha~! You can’t catch me~!”

“He keeps darting around everywhere!” Ace growled. “Coward! Get down here!”

“Climbing on the chandelier is a such an underhanded move. We haven’t even learned how to fly in classes yet.” Deuce scowled, folding his arms over his chest. “We need to think of something else to help us get up there and catch him.”

“Like what?” Ace demanded. I walked up, long since past the point of caring. All the anxiety and frustration has worn away at me, leaving me unable to feel much for this annoying monster. “Eh-!? Eleanor?”

“Eleanor _a._ ” I corrected, staring coldly at the cat up on the ceiling. “Grim… if you don’t come down now, I swear to all that is unholy I _will_ feed you to that one cannibal.”

Ace gave me a weird look, extremely disturbed. “Cannibal!?”

“Some dude from the ceremony. Has a scar on his face. Whatever. Grim!” I raised my voice, aggressively gesturing with my hands as I spoke. Shouting hurt my lungs, but this monster wasn’t going to listen if I played nice. “Get the _frick_ down here now! You want… to study magic, right? You really think… playing hooky… is gonna let you do that!? A-Aren’t you… supposed to be a genius?”

“I _am_ a genius!” He snapped at me. “As such my genius shouldn’t be wasted on clean-up duty! Do it yourself! You’ve got Ace and Deuce to help you!”

I’m gonna hit him. I looked up at Ace, eyebrow twitching. “Is there a ladder?”

“H-Hah? Er, no… I don’t think so.” He glanced around the room. His attention turned to Deuce. “Oi, what’re you just standing there for? Help us out!”

“I’m thinking! There’s… something…” His eyes shot open, the teen holding tight to his pen. “I’ve got it!”

“What?” Ace and I watched as he turned towards us, but the ginger grew increasingly alarmed when Deuce pointed the pen at him. “Wh-Wh-Why are you pointing that at me? What are you planning?”

“I’m going to throw you.” The blue-haired teen bluntly stated.

Wait, what? Oh no.

“Deuce,” I said slowly, staring him down, eyebrows raised in warning, “whatever you’re planning on doing… don’t.” There was no way we would be forgiven if another disaster occurred. I barely managed to escape the headmaster’s rage last time.

“Y-You’ve gotta be joking.” Ace said, looking at his classmate. His eyes widened when his feet were suddenly lifted off the ground, the crystal at the end of Deuce’s pen glowing a bright red. “Wh-Whoa! Whoa, h-hey, put me down! Knock it off! Don’t make me float!”

I could physically _feel_ the color drain from my face as this occurred.

Ace kicked his legs, thrashing as he tried to force himself back on the ground. Deuce raised him higher, only causing the ginger to freak out more. His red eyes met Deuce’s blue. “Y-You’re not actually going to throw me, are you?”

“Make sure you catch him, okay?”

There was no stopping him. He raised Ace higher in the air, the teen letting out a small shout as his body moved on its own. Deuce squinted, moving the pen and positioning Ace diagonally from the chandelier. “Easy now. Take aim… and… fire!”

“Nooo!” My hands flew up to my mouth. Ace _screamed_ as he was sent hurtling through the air. Unable to bring myself to watch I ducked my head and cringed, looking away. Flailing his arms out, Ace was able to latch onto Grim- but their weight was too much for the chandelier to withstand. They dangled from the object for a good three seconds before the chain pulled against the ceiling and snapped, causing them to shriek and crash loudly onto the ground. “Oh jeez…”

Oooh, that had to hurt.

I shook my head, shuddering at the sounds, and glanced at them. The duo was very disoriented. Surrounding them, littering their clothes and hair and covering the floor, were pieces of shattered metal and glass and bits of candle wax. Only half of the chandelier remained together. Dust floated through the cafeteria, and Ace and Grim were covered in it. They coughed and sputtered as they tried to regain their bearings, stumbling and falling back down when they attempted to stand.

“Oh gods…”

Ace and Grim looked unharmed for the most part, if not a bit bruised, but-

“The chandelier is…”

Completely destroyed. There was no salvaging it or trying to reattach it to the ceiling. We were screwed. This was the _second time_ we had vandalized school property, and on the same day. There was no way we would be forgiven. Ace and Deuce are going to get expelled and I… I’m going to be kicked out of the dorm.

I’m going to be trapped in this world forever.

Ace spat out some dirt that gotten in his mouth, pulling some debris out from his hair. “I-I can’t believe this…”

“Fnnagh…” Grim groaned, wobbling backwards and then collapsing on his front. “I don’t feel good.”

My shoulders slumped, all the energy being drained from my body. If there was some way to pay for the damages then perhaps we might be able to get away unscathed, but these two boys were students and I had no money. I staggered back, plopping onto a bench and pressing the back of my arm to my forehead. There was no way we could just clean the mess up either- the teachers were bound to notice the missing chandelier. Someone probably even heard all the noise we were making.

What… do I do? What should I do?

I don’t know anything about this world. Are monsters hiding in the forests, waiting to devour humans like myself if we set so much as one foot outside the gates? What’s even beyond the school grounds? There might be a town nearby since this is a school, but would they be welcome to an outsider like me? I didn’t belong here. Would any of them even be willing to offer someone as sickly as me a job?

I-I’ve always thought myself incredibly lucky with all the generous people I’ve met in my life, but since coming here… it was like my luck was finally running out. No- maybe the proof that I’ve been unlucky all along was the fact that I was even brought here. If I were truly lucky or blessed than the mirror would have never made such a mistake and grabbed me.

I should… I should just accept my fate at this point. I know it’s coming.

My own doom.

“I-I screwed up,” I heard Deuce stammer, “I didn’t think about the landing! Crap.”

Ace coughed again, forcing himself onto his feet and stumbling on over to his classmate, grabbing him by the tie. Deuce was so shaken by his mistake that he wasn’t able to react. Ace’s red eyes bore deep into his blue ones, ablaze with fury. “Are you an _idiot!?_ We caught Grim, but the chandelier is broken! If the headmaster finds out about it, then-”

“Then _what,_ Mr. Trappola?” A voice interrupted smoothly, low and cold. Chills went down all of our spines. “What happens _if_ I find out? Do tell.”

“A-Ah…” Ace closed his eyes and released his classmate, hiding a cringe. “H-Headmaster. You’re… here.”

“Indeed.” Headmaster Crowley said, yellow eyes narrowed. “Now, please… if not the others, then answer me this: What. Do. You. Think. You’re. _Doing!?”_ His voice raised with each syllable until he was straight-up shouting, his words echoing around the cafeteria hall. Grim finally managed to stand, stumbling around the broken chandelier.

“Wh-Why… is the room… spinning~?”

I hunched over, burying my face in my arms and pressing my wrist to my ears. It really was all over. I’m never going to see home or my family again.

“You weren’t satisfied with just destroying the statue, were you?” Headmaster Crowley snapped. “You had to go and destroy the school chandelier as well! I think myself a kind and understanding man, but this is the last straw! You two are expelled! And none of you- _and I mean none of you-_ are ever going to be welcome at Night Raven College ever again! I want you out of here!”

“Please!” Deuce cried. “Anything but that! I have things I must accomplish at this school!”

“You have nothing to blame but your own idiocy.” Headmaster Crowley retorted.

“I will pay for all the damages if I have to!”

...What? I slowly lowered my arms, blinking away the tears stinging my eyes as I looked in the direction of the student. The guilt ripped through the apathy and despair I was feeling, threatening to crush my heart with its cruel grip. This was my fault for getting him involved. If I had just ignored him in the hallway, then…

Headmaster Crowley frowned at Deuce. “This is no ordinary chandelier. This is a magical chandelier that uses candles that are meant to burn for all eternity. It is a masterpiece created by a legendary meister of magical tools! It has been entrusted to the school since its very foundation… and taking in consideration its historical value… it would cost no less than a billion madol.”

I have no idea what that is, but I’m going to assume that’s the currency in this place and holy _frick_ is that a lot.

“Can you pay for those damages?” Headmaster Crowley inquired. Deuce looked like he might throw up.

“A-A billion madol?”

“But… teacher,” Ace began nervously, bringing a hand up to the back of his neck, “can’t you just fix it with magic?”

Headmaster Crowley crossed his arms. “Magic is not all powerful. More importantly, the heart of the chandelier, the magic crystal, was shattered. No two magic crystals are the same.” He lowered his head, golden lights flickering. “Even if I put the candles back together using magic, they will never be lit again.”

“No way…”

“What am I going to tell my mom…?” Deuce murmured.

Taking a shaky breath, I stood and lowered the mask, forcing myself to approach the headmaster. He turned towards me, seeing me walking, and frowned. “Miss Quince?”

“I… Is there… Is there any way you can let them go?” I blinked furiously, feeling the tears fighting their way to the surface. The headmaster blinked, and the boys stared at me in surprise. “I-It’s… my fault… for not… for not keeping a better eye on Grim, a-and I asked Deuce to help me find him, so if… if not for that then… the chandelier wouldn’t have… w-wouldn’t have…”

I can’t breathe. It hurts. My eyes burn so bad.

“H-Hey, Eleanor…” Ace couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Deuce, meanwhile, looked like he might cry himself, a hand pressed to his chest.

“Why are you…?”

I pressed my palms gently together, trying very hard not to break down in the middle of talking. The tears were harder than ever to control. “Please? I-I’ll leave a-and I’ll take Grim with me, so…”

Headmaster Crowley stared at me for a minute and then sighed. “It’s very brave of you to step up to defend these young men, Miss Quince, but I’m afraid I can not let this pass. Although…” He paused. “I suppose there is one way you could fix this. One way… to fix the chandelier.”

“What? Th-There is?” I choked, swallowing down the painful lump in my throat. Deuce and Ace let out surprised shouts.

Headmaster Crowley nodded. “The magic crystal for this chandelier was taken from the Dwarfs’ Mine. If we have a magic crystal of the same kind as the original, then repairs might be possible.” 

“Then…” Deuce stepped forward, determination in his gaze. “I will go find that magic crystal! Please, allow me to go!”

“There is no guarantee any actually remain.” The headmaster warned. “The mine has been closed for years and there’s a strong possibility it is exhausted of all crystals.”

“I’ll do anything to avoid getting expelled!” Deuce told him, blue eyes fierce.

“...Alright.” Headmaster Crowley nodded. “I’ll give you one night. Come to me with a magic crystal by tomorrow morning or face expulsion.”

“Yes!” Deuce held his fists up. “Thank you very much! You can count on me.”

Ace ruffled his hair, sighing. “Let’s go get that magic crystal, then, I guess.”

“You can use the gate in the Mirror Chamber to get to the Dwarfs’ Mine directly.” Headmaster Crowley informed. “Do take care.”

“Yes, sir!” Deuce exclaimed. Grim groaned in the background, slowly waking up.

I sniffled, brain failing to process that we had been given a second chance at redemption. I blinked when I felt a hand plant itself on my head, fingers tugging lightly at my hair and forcing me to lean back, my brown eyes wide as they met a pair of red. “You’re coming with us.” Ace stated, a grin on his face. “Got that? So grab that dumb pet of yours and let’s go.”

“O… Okay...?”

The ginger gave me a small shove, pushing in the direction of the monster cat. I stumbled, nearly tripping over my own feet, and wandered over to Grim. I knelt down beside him. “Wha…? What’s happened?” Grim asked. He looked so very confused by his surroundings.

“Y… You done screwed up.” Was all I said, hoisting him up into my arms. I carried him over to where Deuce and Ace were waiting, the headmaster watching in silence as we walked away- a hand to his chin in thought. “I wish you would stop causing problems for once, Grim…”

“Hah?” The cat monster was still dazed. He had no idea what I was talking about. Ace sighed as we left the cafeteria and wandered through the halls, making our way to the room where the entrance ceremony had been held yesterday.

“Man, just how did today turn out like this…?”

“Now isn’t the time for that.” Deuce scolded, rushing ahead of us towards the Mirror of Darkness. The mask was floating in the reflection, eyeing us curiously as we approached. “Magic mirror on the wall, light our way to prevent our fall! Take us to Dwarfs’ Mine!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Juice- er, I mean, Deuce is here! :D Hopefully Riddle was still in-character for his early game personality. What do you guys think so far?


	6. The Dwarfs' Mine

The woods were dark and devoid of all color, the skies above a haunting grey. Grim had snapped back into awareness shortly after arriving, and we were currently making our way through the forest towards the mines. I had that strange sensation again- the one of this place being oddly familiar to me- and the headache I had only worsened when we crossed a small bridge, approaching an abandoned cottage.

It was so small and quaint, and I could only imagine how cozy and cute it must have been back when this place was thriving. The people who lived in it must have been so pleasant. But now… moss grew along the stone walls and rooftop, and the bricks looked a bit like they were rotting away. Cobwebs lined the corners of the building, and the place itself was so quiet it almost made me wish I was back at the abandoned dorm.

This place was so much creepier. Seeing that house left in such a rotten state...

It left a sour feeling on my tongue and made me want to throw up. It didn’t feel right at all.

“This place used to be so prosperous back when magic crystals and diamonds were being mined, but now…” Deuce shivered, bringing his arms up and crossing them over his chest. “To think this is what’s become of the Dwarfs’ Mine…”

Grim dug his claws into my robe deep enough to prick skin. “I-It feels like something is about to jump out at us!”

I swallowed down the lump in my throat, trying to ignore the pounding in my skull. “Wh-What should we do now? Just… walk into the mine?”

“There’s a house down there.” Ace said, pointing at the the cottage. “Let’s ask them about the place first.”

I was really hoping we could avoid doing that. What on earth made him think people still lived there? It was obviously abandoned. There might be ghosts inside. I already dealt with my share of undead and quite frankly I did _not_ want to deal with any more. I followed behind Deuce and Ace with Grim still in my arms, watching as the blue-haired teen knocked on the door. “H-Hello? Gah!”

The door opened, creaking ominously and letting dust spill out.

I jumped back just as Ace and Deuce shouted, the two boys startled. Grim dug his claws deeper into my skin and I flinched. I was about to call him out for hurting me, but then I saw how scared he was and I begrudgingly decided to stay quiet. This place was horror movie central. As much as he annoyed me I couldn’t bring myself to let him shiver in fear alone. I was terrified myself, but I was doing my best not to show it. And having something to cling onto… was sort of helping me with that fear, even if it was Grim.

“Sh-Should we go in?” Deuce stammered. Ace tried to relax, shoulders having gone stiff from his fright, and he ruffled his hair.

“Well, I-I mean, we gotta find who lives here, right? That way we know what to expect…”

Oh no. Let’s not. I shook my head fervently. “Uhhh, and get ourselves killed by ghosts? Because there’s totally ghosts in that house.” The two boys looked down at me, seeming almost convinced by my words. “Let’s stay away from the super creepy and totally haunted house, ‘kay?”

“I-I can take on any ghosts!” Grim suddenly declared, lashing his tail and he pulled away, glaring despite the tears in his eyes. “I’m not afraid!”

“O-Oi, who you callin’ scared?” Ace demanded. What the-? That wasn’t what Grim said at all. “I’m not a coward.”

“You are.” Grim growled. “All of you are!”

“Tch! Shut up.” Ace marched forward, slamming the door open the rest of the way. “See!? No ghosts!”

Deuce and I called out to him, protesting, and I hurriedly held my mask up to my face as we entered the building. Inside was a small kitchen and living room combo, and based on the others reactions I could tell the air was extremely stuffy and thick. Grim climbed onto my shoulder and I put my mask on properly, grimacing at the sight of the abandoned furniture and cobwebs, slowly walking around the kitchen area and wondering _why_ it all look so familiar.

So… nostalgic. It felt strangely close to my heart for some reason and I think that’s why looking at this place hurt so much. I shouldn’t know it, it made no sense as to why I felt like I did, but at the same time…

Ugh, I don’t know. I think all this stress is making me delusional. First the statues and now this place? Jeez. I watched as Deuce looked around, running his fingers along the kitchen table and making a face of disgust at how dusty it was. His leather gloves were covered in a thick layer of dirt. “It’s such a mess.” He said, frowning. “It really must be abandoned.”

Grim began to spit. “Blegh- _pweh!_ Ugh. I got a spider web in the face. Peh!”

“Aren’t these chairs a bit small for grown-ups?” Ace asked, frowning as he looked at the table set-up. “Are they for kids? One, two… whoa! Seven? That’s so many!”

“This place is near the Dwarfs’ Mine, right?” I said, curling my hands close to my chest, nearing the staircase and looking up nervously. I really hoped no bugs or murderers jumped out at me. “Could be dwarves that lived here.”

“That’s plausible.” Deuce agreed with me, following me. He placed a hand on the railing, taking a step onto the staircase, moving ahead of me. “This must have a been a lively home when the mines were still flourishing. Should we check second floor? There might be something up there worth finding.”

Ace shook his head, scowling and batting a cobweb when it got too close for his liking. He eyed the fireplace and the dusty old pot hanging from inside it. “No way. But honestly- I can’t blame whoever lived here for leaving. They did what they had to. After all, magic crystals are found inside coal, and if they couldn’t find anymore then there was no point in staying.”

“Eh?” Grim blinked. “Then what are we here for?”

“Because there might be at least _one_ left.” Deuce told him, narrowing his eyes. He folded his arms over his chest. “It’s our only chance to avoid expulsion.”

“Let’s go check out the mine now. There’s nothing here.” Ace said.

I was more than happy to leave this house, though a part of me worried… if it was really because of the lack of crystals that the owners of that cottage disappeared. There was so much furniture inside of it; if they truly went somewhere else, wouldn’t they have taken their belongings with them? I hoped they were okay. “Man, this place is so creepy.”

Everyone nodded in agreement, voicing their complaints.

It took about fifteen minutes to get to the mines, as they were located up on a hill, and I found myself out of breath by the time we reached the entrance. Grim was making snarky comments about my stamina while Ace teased me and called me slow. Deuce, on the other hand, asked if I was alright. I flashed him a weak smile, hunched over and breathing heavily.

“I-I’m… fine. Just can’t… move like you guys. Lungs hate me. Sorry.”

“You’re so pathetic.” Grim grouched. “You can’t do anything, can you?”

“I can… throw you down this hill… if you’d like.” I suggested with the sweetest expression, hiding my pain. “Would you like that? You aren’t… helping… with your fat butt sitting on my shoulder.”

“Hey!” The cat monster looked greatly offended by my words. Good. “You’re such a nuisance.”

“How kind of you.” I took a shaky breath and wheezed, standing up straight, and staggered forward. Deuce frowned.

“Do you want help? You can… You can lean on my arm if you want.”

I waved him off. “I’ll… be fine. Just… don’t expect me to run if any ghosts do show up.”

Ace snorted. “Alright. Letting you die it is.”

“Ace!” Deuce sent him a look. “We’re not letting a girl get killed by ghosts. Now come on.”

“Fine, fine~!” The ginger sighed, lacing his hands behind his head and walking after. I yelped when Ace planted a hand on my head again, pushing me along with him. “I won’t let you die then. Jeez. Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes is so stiff. Ah- oh wow. That’s the entrance?”

“I-It’s a pitch black hole!” Grim cried. He wasn’t kidding; the entrance looked half like it might collapse at any moment, and there wasn’t any light shining from the inside. There was no way to see what could lie inside. “We have to go in there?”

“Scared again?” Ace teased. “Lame~!”

“I-I’m not scared!” The cat monster defended, hopping off my shoulder. He glared at the ginger, hurrying along the slope to stand at the entrance. “I’ll be leading the group! All of you follow me.” He pushed past Deuce, running into the mine. Ace blinked.

“That was easy.”

I sighed. “If he does something stupid again, I’m blaming you.”

Ace grinned, taking the opportunity to shake me like a bobble head again. I made a face. “Okay~! Good luck with that. What’re you gonna do, try chasing me down again?” I seriously don’t like this person. I ducked down to escape Ace’s hold and quickened my pace, walking next to Deuce. He glanced down at me as we walked before turning his attention back to Grim, who was still walking ahead. “Ahh~ it’s so dark! Where’s my cell…? Aha! Flashlight!”

I was not prepared for the onslaught of light Ace forced upon us. Deuce looked surprised.

The ginger beamed proudly. “Now we can actually see! Pretty smart, right? Juice, do you have one, too?”

“Ah- yeah. And it’s Deuce! _“Deu”!_ Remember it.” The teen reached into his pocket and did the same as Ace. “What about you, Miss Quince?”

“Hah? O-Oh, uh…” They were both looking at me. “I don’t? I was summoned to the school without any of my stuff, so…”

“You’re so lame~!” Ace laughed. “You have all the bad luck in the world, don’t you?”

I lowered my head, worrying my bottom lip. It was seriously starting to feel that way. Headmaster Crowley had been so furious; I was surprised he didn’t lash out with his whip-of-love. Ugh, I hate this. I hate everything. We might not even find a magic crystal in this place. And if we don’t find one…

Wait, it just got so much colder all of a sudden. Oh no. “G-Guys, I think we have company.”

“What?” Ace looked so confused. Grim’s fur stood on end, the cat monster understanding what I meant as soon as he felt the wave of cold. Deuce tensed, narrowing his eyes down the tunnel.

“Do… you all see that?”

The ginger frowned, placing his hands on his hips. “See what?”

Frick.

Floating towards us were two pillsbury doughboy-looking ghosts, dressed very similar as the ones in the abandoned dorm, with hoods over their heads. _“Heeheehee~ we haven’t had visitors in over ten years~! How exciting!”_ They vanished and reappeared to the side, causing us all to jump and step closer to each other. Grim had backed away, clinging to my feet, claws digging deep into my ankles.

_“Make yourselves at home!”_

One of the ghosts floated closer, grinning ear-to-ear.

_“Yeah, for eternity!”_

Nope, no, I refuse! I flailed my arms for a moment, taking a step back, and stammered, voice cracking, “G-G-G-Grim! Left! Left!”

“F-Fnnuaaaagh!” The cat monster squeezed his eyes tightly shut, opening his mouth and letting out a huge burst of flames as Ace hurriedly jumped out of the way. “Did… Did I get him!?”

_“Owwwwie!”_

“Haha, yes! Next, human! Next!”

“Uhhbaduhh, th-the right! Two o’ clock!” 

_“Gaaah! Hot, hot, hot!”_

Oh thank gods, it’s working. Phew. We’re doing it. Perfect. I was shaking so badly right now, I was surprised my legs haven’t given out on me yet. An arm suddenly thrust itself in front of me and I blinked, startled, and looked up to see Ace and Deuce stepping forward, brandishing their magical pen wands. “Wh-What are you guys-?”

“Stay back.” Deuce ordered. “We don’t have time to deal with these guys, but we can’t run either… damn it!”

“This is so lame!” Ace growled. “Have some of my wind! Hyah!” A large gust picked up as he moved the pen in his hand, and the ghosts shouted as they were sent hurtling down the cave passage. Their shouts echoed along the walls, dying away as they faded from view, and the group let out a collective sigh of relief. “That… actually worked. Hell yeah!”

“A-Are they gone?” Grim asked, cracking open one of his eyes. “Phew… thank goodness. Who knew you’d be so useful, Carrot-top?”

The ginger whirled around, glaring at him. “The hell’d you just call me!?”

“Knock it off, you two!” Deuce snapped. “Let’s go before the ghosts come back.”

Holy frick, he’s so mad. Oh gods. Okay. I really screwed up when I agreed to let him help me search for Ace before. Crap. We hurriedly followed Deuce down the mines, but after what felt like almost an entire hour of aimless wandering we could hear the sounds of the ghosts again. Grim jumped, digging his claws into my shoulders once more. “Th-They’re still following us!”

 _“We... We’ve almost…”_ One of the ghosts huffed, wheezing as they struggled to fly after us. _“We’ve almost c-caught you…!”_

_“Come a-and… relax with us!”_

“Why are you all out of breath!?” Grim demanded. “You’re ghosts!”

Deuce looked alarmed. “Do ghosts have lungs, too!?” I blinked, feeling a laugh trying to worm up out of my throat at that weird thought. The ghosts seemed less scary now for some reason, though it probably helped that I was surrounded with people who could easily get rid of them.

“Dude, me too, though! Talk about a mood.”

Ace gave me a weird look before shaking his head, exasperated. “Can we save this discussion for later? We need to get rid of them! Jeez.” He waved the pen again, sending more wind in the ghosts direction. They all yelled as they were sent sailing away. “There… finally. Round two’s done.”

“There better not be a round three.” Grim muttered. “I don’t think they’re following us anymore, but…” He glanced behind us, seeing that we had walked a considerable distance away from where the battle took place.

Deuce was starting to look very frustrated. “We don’t have much time left…!”

We did leave in the evening to come here- who knows how much time has passed since we’ve been in here. “I-It’ll be fine. Maybe. Hopefully. Oh gods, okay, um-” I was starting to panic too. His frustration and paranoia was infectious. “What do we do? Where would a magic crystal be hiding in here? What does it look-”

“Funaagh!” Grim shouted abruptly, startling all of us and cutting me off mid sentence. “D-Did you guys hear that? There was a c-creepy sound coming from that way!”

He pointed down one of the other tunnels. Ace and Deuce hurriedly shone their flashlights down the dark path, trying to see what he was talking about. Ace narrowed his eyes. “I sent those ghosts flying; there’s no way they should be back here already. ...Ack! Something’s coming this way! Hide!”

He grabbed Deuce by the arm and starting tugging him along, and Deuce proceeded to grab my arm to bring me with, and then Grim hopped onto my shoulder as we all somehow wound up hiding behind a mine cart, the two boys turning off their flashlights.

“I can’t believe how many ghosts there are in this place!” Ace hissed angrily.

Deuce glared at the approaching intruder, unable to see it but assuming it was another undead specter. “We don’t have time to deal with them one-by-one,” He whispered irritably, “we have to sneak by them.”

Ace sent him a cold look. “Don’t tell me what to do! We wouldn’t even be in this mess if you didn’t do something so stupid! Who the hell goes and throws people at chandeliers, huh? Huuuh?”

Oh my gods. “Are you two _trying_ to get us killed? Hush!”

“You hush!” Ace snapped back childishly. “You started this!”

“What?” Seriously? I’m gonna hit this guy. “I was just trying to sweep the street!”

Ace was fuming. “If it weren’t for you guys I’d be back in my dorm!”

Deuce’s eyebrow twitched and his expression darkened considerably, voice raising. “You wanna talk about who started it? About who's to blame? Fine. This is all because you tried to skip out on detention!”

“Is not! It was because that stupid furball charred the Queen of Hearts’ statue!”

“Fnnagh!” Grim was alarmed. “That was because you were making fun of me!”

“Will you all _shut up!?”_ I hissed. They jumped, looking at me. I yanked my mask off, fixing them with a cold stare. “There are ghosts out there trying to kill us right now. Okay? S-So just… stop talking for five minutes so we can sneak by! Please? Or do you _want_ to be expelled?”

They turned away, expressions conflicted, and I sighed. They were getting along so well earlier.

Wait- what was that? I blinked, turning my head around, alarmed. “D-Did you guys hear something?”

“That thing I said I heard before…!” Grim whispered, ears drawing back. “It’s here.”

There was some kind of… liquid in the distance that was sloshing about, and we could hear the rumble of a voice. Yet something about that voice was distorted and inhuman, and the sound of it left chills going down all of our spines. It was such an unnatural sound. An unnatural way of speaking. Whatever it was had to be dangerous.

Ace gripped the sides of the mine cart, face paling. “What is… with that voice?”

_“Stooon…es… mine…”_

“I-I think it’s getting closer.” Deuce choked out. He peered over the cart. “Uwahh-! It appeared!”

It was too late to even think about remaining in hiding. The boy’s shout gave us away. As such Ace wasted no time in turning his flashlight back on, pointing it towards the newcomer, and what we saw was going to haunt our dreams for a very long time.

It was some kind of… monster. Its body was this broken glass jar, ink leaking out of a crack on its face, and the black liquid spilled out endlessly from its bottom. It wore some kind of dirtied red coat that was tied at the waist with a belt, and a brown hat that dangled from the jar cork. In its inky black, goopy hands was a lantern that shone with a purple light, and a giant pick ax. That outfit… disturbed me in so many ways- far more than what it should- and the heart in my chest twisted painfully.

It faced us. If it had eyes… I had no doubt that it would be glaring at us. _“That stone… it’s MIIINE!”_

Ace and Deuce booked it out of there screaming. Paws smacking me in the face as Grim jumped off my shoulder was the only indication I had that he went with them, too. “Wh-Wha-!? Hey! Don’t just-! Uhhh, h-hi there, hello.” I whirled around, greeting the monster and stammering fearfully as it approached. I stood, clinging to the edge of the mine cart, slowly backing up. “Lovely weather we’re having today, don’t you think? I-I just _love_ that outfit you’ve got on, um, p-please don’t… kill me. Oh gods. O-Oh gods…”

I’m so dead. This thing was gigantic. It could crush me with the lantern alone. The tears were building up quick, the lump in my throat hard to swallow.

“Is… Is there… any way we c-co-could, um… talk this out or-? Y’know, be… friends?”

 _“NOOOO!”_ The monster screeched.

Wow, um. Rejection at its finest, I suppose. Rude. Gah-! I let out a cry and jumped, throwing myself to the side to avoid the swing of its pick ax. I rolled along the ground, coughing and sputtering, and watching as it struggled to pull the tool out of the mine cart it had just impaled. Th-That was almost me…

_“It’s… miiine! MIINE!”_

The monster thrashed its body, ink spilling everywhere, and I yelped when the mine cart came flying- slamming into the cave wall and shattering. I screamed as debris went flying and ducked down, covering my head with my arms, and flinched when I felt some shards cut away at my robe and flesh. When I looked up, I could see the monster heading my way again.

“Oi, Eleanor!” I inhaled sharply, hearing my name get called incorrectly, and I whirled around to see who it was just as the monster raised its pick ax once more. Deuce and Ace ran into the cave, Grim in tow, and they held out their magical pens. “You still alive!?”

“Y-You guys… came back?” The tears welled up again, though for a whole different reason this time.

Deuce narrowed his eyes when he saw what was happening. “Come on out- _cauldron!”_

There was a loud thud as the monster took a giant metal pot to the face. It was not prepared to be pelted with such a utensil, and as such could not fix its aim once it was knocked off balance. I screeched and rolled over, pulling my knees to my chest and watching as the pick ax pierced the ground just a few inches away from my feet. Next thing I knew a pair of hands were grabbing at me, pulling me, a familiar ginger wrapping my arm around his shoulders.

“A-Ace?”

“Come on, let’s go! Move!”

 _“LEAVE ME ALOOOONE!”_ The monster lashed out, swinging wildly, and the large lamp in its hand hit us both- sending us flying right into Deuce. We all cried out as we were forced to roll into a crumpled heap, and I gasped- crushed under the weight of two heavy teens and suffocating as a result. _“GO HOOOME!”_

Ace grimaced and pushed himself off the pile, giving me room to breathe, and I slid onto my back and coughed, removing myself from Deuce. “Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes should just stand back. Let me handle this…! Haaah!” He waved his magical pen and sent a blast of wind towards the monster. Unlike before with the ghosts, it seemed to have no effect on the monster. “Wh-Wha-!? Gah!”

The ginger ducked, barely avoiding getting torn in half by the pick ax. Grim let out a wail upon seeing this, tears welling up in his eyes. “S-Stay awaaaay!” He held out his paws, eyes squeezing shut. Blue flames spread about the area, but the ink dripping from the monster only served to put out the fire.

The attacks were doing nothing to it.

“I-It’s not working…” I choked out, sitting on my knees, watching in horror as this all played out. “We’re gonna die.”

Deuce flinched, holding his side, and he stared at the scene intensely before his eyes widened. “At the end of the tunnel, there’s… No way. Could it be!? Is there actually a magic crystal here?”

“What?” I blinked furiously and followed his gaze, squinting and staring in the distance. Behind the monster there was something that almost seemed to… sparkle? “Holy frick.”

_“GO AWAAAAY! IT’S MIIIINE!”_

“We can’t get it right now!” Grim cried. “It’ll kill us at this rate! We need to get out of here!”

I struggled to stand, hunching over with my arms dangling limply at my sides. As much as I hated to admit it, the little gremlin had a point. “W-We need to go…! Retreat!”

There was no argument.

Though we were all covered in cuts and bruises, and were a little worse for wear, we all clambered onto our feet and limped away, holding onto one another and trying to use each other as crutches to help our movement. Grim dug his claws into my shoulders, clinging to my back as I struggled to keep up, Ace and Deuce moving too fast for my short asthmatic legs to keep up.

When the group finally made it out of the mines we all collapsed- worn and exhausted. My body felt so heavy and numb and cold and warm, and if I didn’t know any better I would have thought somebody poured acid into my chest because _frick_ did my lungs hate me right now. Heaving and gasping, we were all in similar states. Ace was sitting on his rear, Deuce was down on one knee, and Grim had sprawled himself out on my stomach the moment I rolled onto my back.

If I had the strength I would have pushed him off, but unfortunately I lacked any feeling at all in my limbs. Everything just hurt.

“I-Is this… far enough?” Grim choked. “Did… Did we lose it?”

“Owww…” Ace leaned his head back and groaned, grasping at his wounded side. “That thing hit me hard! What the hell was that? The headmaster… never said anything about monsters!”

“It didn’t seem like an ordinary ghost.” Deuce commented, frowning, holding his bruised arm. Ace brushed his bangs back with a wince, hissing a little.

“Let’s just… give up. I’d rather get expelled… than killed trying to take that thing on!”

I wanted to speak, to make my own comment on the matter, but I had no voice. I merely tilted my head to the side and watched tiredly as the two began to bicker again, Ace seeming to trigger Deuce’s anger with his suggestion. “Are you kidding me right now!?” The blue-haired boy yelled. “I’d rather die than face expulsion! There’s a magic crystal right in front of us- _and you want to go home!?”_

Ace laughed mockingly. He sat up straight, watching as Deuce stood. “You talk big for someone who’s even worse at magic than I am. Go alone if you want- I’m done. I’ve already gotten my beating for the day.”

“Oooh, is that right!?” Deuce lost it. His serious demeanor was forgotten as he glared, slamming a fist into a palm, cracking his knuckles as he took a step towards a startled Ace. His polite manner of speech was gone, instead replaced with something more rude and crass. “Then stay right there and shrivel up like the spineless coward you are! We don’t need you!”

Once he had recovered from his initial shock, the grin on Ace’s face broadened, the ginger slowly pushing himself up onto his feet. “Haaaah? Coward? Who exactly are you talking about here~?”

I… swear… if these two don’t… shut up… I’m gonna… hit them. I wheezed as I tried to sit up, nearly falling back down as my arms tried to give out on me, hands crying in protest of being used. “S-Stop… fi… fighting…”

“D-Did your personality just switch?” Grim asked, confused. “Are you okay, Deuce?”

“Ah-!” The blue-haired teen was alarmed. He recoiled, bringing a hand up to his face, looking almost ashamed of himself. “F-Forgive me, I… lost my composure.”

“C-Can’t you guys…” Ow, ow, speaking hurt. Don’t make me talk so much. The boys blinked, all three of them turning to look down at me- as if finally realizing I was there. Rude. “Can’t… you… use magic to take that thing down? Th-There are… other spells… right?”

Deuce sighed, shaking his head. “Like the headmaster said, magic isn’t all powerful. If you can’t imagine it, it won’t materialize. Both complicated and large-scale magic require a lot of training to use.”

“That’s why we have schools for magic.” Ace said, squatting down, grin becoming a little more genuine. He watched as I struggled to sit up. “It takes a lot of practice to just be able to use magic, nonetheless cast spells the moment you think about them. To put it bluntly…” He sighed. “You’ll screw up if you lose focus.”

“...And here I thought you guys just did what you wanted.” I flinched, curling my arm to my stomach, finally getting some feeling back. “Y-You actually… have to think about it, huh?”

“Everyone has something they’re good at.” Ace explained. He was acting surprisingly calm. “With those kinds of spells you can go off of instinct, but the more advanced stuff you need to train for it.”

“Oh… that makes sense.”

Ace chuckled, grinning. “Right?”

“Anyway,” Deuce said, changing the topic, “I’m heading back in there. I’ll figure out a way to beat that monster and come back with the crystal. Just you wait.”

Ace rolled his eyes. “I sort of figured it out from the chandelier incident, but you’re an idiot, aren’t you? You could barely land a hit earlier and now you’re saying you’ll “figure it out”? It’ll just end up the same.”

“What did you say!?” Deuce growled, personality switch going off again. He leaned forward, raising a fist, and I hurriedly leaned back to avoid getting in the way in case he decided he was going to dive down and swing a hit at Ace. Grim sighed.

“Here they go again…”

“W-Will you guys _please_ just… stop it already!?” They paused, whirling around with even Grim looking surprised. I glared at them, furious and scared and upset, and over all an emotional mess from what all happened yesterday and today. “J-Just… stop fighting, _please._ N-No one… could do anything back there, okay? W-We were… We were panicked a-and scared, and I-I’m really happy you all… saved me but… but…”

I bit my bottom lip, squeezing my eyes shut as the tears stung my eyes.

“But we’re not… g-gonna get anywhere… if we don’t… work together!”

Ace clicked his tongue and looked away, while Deuce brought a hand up to his forehead, brushing his bangs back worriedly. “Do you really think that’ll help?” The blue-haired teen asked, frowning. “How do we even go about that?”

“You’re even more idiotic than he is!” Ace exclaimed, snorting. “I can’t believe you would suggest something so lame. No way.”

Deuce stared at Ace for a moment before turning his gaze away, shaking his head. “...Yeah, I can’t do it. There’s no way I can get along with someone like him.”

“Well then.” I blinked away the tears, sniffling and bringing my knees up to my chest, resting an arm atop my head. “I… I guess that’s it then? We’re just… giving up?”

“But…” Grim hesitated. “Isn’t getting expelled on the first day of school… way lamer than working together to defeat a crazy powerful monster?”

Silence. Ace and Deuce paused at his words and I raised my head, stunned by how effective that was on the boys. It was at that moment I finally realized something that I already knew, but never truly realized. I was dealing with _teenagers_. There was no way they would want to be called lame or cowardly, or anything of the like. Oh my gods, I’ve been out of school for year and I’ve already forgotten how to deal with these kinds of people. Jeez.

It took everything I had to hide the smile trying to curl up on my face. “Hmm. Y’know, that… that _is_ pretty lame.”

“Geh…” Ace cringed. “...You know what? Fine. We just have to get that stone, right?”

“Yes.” Deuce nodded. The boys looked at me.

“So,” Ace started, grinning, “what’s the plan?”

Hah? Oh frick. 


	7. Victory in Spades

They were making such a mistake putting me in charge. Oh gods. I paced in front of the mine entrance, mildly panicking as we went over the plan one last time. Grim looked as nervous as I felt. “D-Do you guys really think this will work?” He asked, a bit scared. “N-Not that I’m worried or anything, but…”

Nope. No. It was not going to work. I was going to get us all killed with my stupidity. A hand on my head made me stop pacing, red eyes amused as they looked down at me. Ace grinned. “You’re too stiff! Just relax and go with the flow! It’ll be fine~!”

“Yes.” Deuce nodded. “We can do this. Now come on- let’s drag out the monster.”

“Mother freaking- okay, fine.” I huffed, taking in a deep breath. My lungs were still mad, but if everything went to plan I shouldn’t have to run or stress myself out. “Everyone remember their positions?”

“Yup!” Ace nodded. Grim rushed into the cave. “Here we go!”

I shook my head and flexed my arms out, back marching to my spot near the closest tree. It was quite a bit a ways from the entrance, which was the point, and it saved me from having to rush over when the time came. Deuce and Ace stood on opposite sides of the entrance, watching and waiting for the cat monster to come running out with our opponent. They had their magical pens ready to cast their magic.

I’m seriously hoping this works…

Back home I was always hiding behind other people, so being forced to take charge was terrifying. What if everything went wrong? What if my plan was too simple? Or too complicated? I’m not the brightest; I’m obtuse in a lot of areas and if certain things weren’t explained to me I would never understand. All my years of rpg games did not prepare me for this.

_Just… breathe. Don’t panic._

We’ve got this. Frick, man, we only had a few hours left until sunset. If it wasn’t for all the adrenaline pumping through my veins I would have passed out long ago. Sheer determination and willpower was all that was keeping me moving with how bad of shape I was in.

I squinted and watched as blue flames lit up the dark entrance of the cave, Grim running out and shouting insults to the ink monster as it followed. “Oi, ugly! Over here! Nyahaha~! You can’t catch me!”

He jumped into the area, blowing more flame out of his mouth, before using that distraction to leap towards Deuce.

I held my arms out, waving at the ink monster as it recovered. “Hey, look at me; I’m a target!” The ink monster shook its body and roared, focusing its attention on me. Perfect. At the same time, though- _oh gods_ it’s focusing its attention on me. “Sickly human ready to be killed~! You know you wanna murder me~ la la la~!”

Ace looked like he was trying hard not to laugh at my stupid antics, while Deuce had placed a hand over his mouth- most likely hiding a smile.

Though it wore me out I continued to wave my arms. shaking my shoulders and leaning side-to-side to try and taunt the creature even more. The ink monster did not seem pleased with my behavior, swinging its giant pick ax through the air.

 _“LEEEAAAAAVE! Thieves… THIEVES!”_ I yelped, stumbling back and nearly rolling down the hill as I fell down. _“I won’t… giVE IT TO YOUUUU! THE STONE… THE STONE IS MIIIINE!”_

Grim clamped his paws over his mouth, barely stopping himself in time from speaking. It would have given away everyone’s positions if he spoke. Deuce and Ace sent him looks, and I scrambled back onto my feet. I yelped and lunged to the side, narrowing avoiding getting crushed by a giant lantern, and quickly glanced at the cave entrance. The monster was almost the perfect distance away.

 _“GOOO HOOOOOME!”_ It screeched.

“B-Believe me,” I wheezed back in retort, “I would love to!”

Gods, this is so scary. Sweat beaded down the sides of my face and I could feel my legs trembling. If I gave them the chance I had no doubt that they’d give out on me. This is so stupid and dangerous and insane; why did I ever come up with this stupid plan in the first place!?

I-I don’t want to die.

I don’t want to be doing this.

“Hey, beasty…” I greeted, choking on my own voice. I scooted away, feeling my heart body slamming my ribcage as it picked up pace, terrified of what was going to happen. The ink monster whirled around, globs of black liquid splashing onto the ground. I recoiled. It was close to me- _too close_ \- but a little bit more and it would be according to plan. “Y-You sure we can’t… y’know… be friends? I-I give great hugs, so like, um…”

_“NOOOO!”_

“O-Okay, that’s twice you’ve rejected me. Rude.” It raised the pick ax again and I tensed, whirling my head around with a manic expression, looking at the cave entrance and then back at the monster. I squeezed my eyes shut, lunging to the side and rolling out of the way as the monster stabbed the ground. I screamed at the boys. “Now!”

“Extra large tempest comin’ right up!” Ace declared, holding out his magical pen. Grim grinned, swishing his tail back and forth excitedly.

“Don’t forget the Great Grim’s fire special~!”

The ink monster had just freed his pick ax and was about to swing at me again when blue flames flew forth and started to coil around it like a vortex, guided by Ace’s wind. My heart almost stopped working for a second, skipping a few beats out of sheer _relief_ that I was still alive and that the two performed their roles as told. I wheezed, scrambling onto my feet, and forced my way up the hill. I was so dizzy.

Seeing that it was trapped in the vortex of flames the ink monster roared, not at all pleased with its current situation. Ace was grinning ear-to-ear as I approached, waving his magical pen about every now and then to shift the flames. “Check it~! If we do it like this, I can fan Grim’s crappy flames into an inferno!”

“They’re not crappy!” Grim snapped, glaring at him. “Jeez, every word out of your mouth pisses me off!”

“W-We did it…!” I gasped, hunched over, hand to my chest. “Holy frick. O-Okay. Deuce!”

The blue-haired teen nodded and held out his magical pen, his eyebrows furrowing in thought. “Gotta stay calm.” His eyes snapped open and he pointed the pen at the ink monster, glaring. “Come forth: _cauldron!”_

The ink monster was not prepared to have a giant metal pot dropped on its head… again.

Grim squealed, jumping up into the air, pumping his fists. “Heck yeah! That was awesome! Good work, guys!” He landed back down, snickering, watching as the monster struggled to get up. “It’s flattened just like Ace was earlier!”

Ace clicked his tongue against his teeth. “You didn’t have to bring that up. Ugh, this is seriously not my day…”

“S-S’not my year.” I choked, standing up right and stumbling a little. “You guys… okay?”

“We’re fine.” Deuce said, stepping forward. He smiled at me.“You did great luring that thing out there. Now let’s go get that crystal before it recovers!”

That was the plan, but that monster freaked me out more than expected. There was no way I would be able to keep up with these guys in the caves again. It would be better if I just stayed and acted as lookout, to let them know if the ink monster recovered. Pain flitted across my expression and I tried to speak, but then a hand was grabbing my wrist and I was being dragged along, Ace tugging me alongside him and Deuce.

I was… so dizzy…

I found myself zoning out during the time we were moving, mind no longer really associating with reality as the lightheadedness became too much. At one point my legs grew too heavy for me to actually walk and the world grew dark, spinning around me. I heard Ace shout and I remember Grim saying something, but I couldn’t really focus on what their words. Oxygen wasn’t making its way into my lungs the way it should, so I couldn’t breathe or think or concentrate, and all I wanted to do was sleep.

“-eriously deadweight!”

Huh? I blinked groggily, vaguely registering the fact that I was no longer on the ground. Orange spikes of hair poked my face and, after a long moment of trying to think through my splitting headache, I recognized it as Ace’s hair. Why was it…? Oh. Am I on his back? Why? When did… that happen?

“Such a pain.” He grumbled. The ginger was carrying me piggy-back style as he ran through the mine caves. Grim was currently perched on Deuce’s shoulder, shouting for everyone to hurry up, and I slowly turned my head to glance behind us. How far… were we from the entrance? I feel so nauseous. It wouldn’t surprise me if I had a fever from all the stress. “Oi, Juice! How much farther!?”

“Deuce! And not too far- _aha!_ There, look! The magic crystal.” The blue-haired teen rushed over, kneeling down and digging through a pile of rocks and coal. He pulled out a small blue rectangle shaped stone, the insides of it glowing red and green. It was quite beautiful. Deuce whirled around, a huge smile on his face. “We… actually got it! Haha! Miss Quince, your plan really-”

_“HAAAANDS OOOOFFF OF IT!”_

The blue-haired teen jumped, and Grim dug his claws into his shoulders. The cat monster yelped, “I-It’s coming this way!”

“We need to get out of here!” Ace exclaimed. “Ahh- but first, the monster! Damn, I can’t cast any spells like this…”

“D-Deuce, summon some more cauldrons on that thing or something!” Grim stammered, shaking the teen as best as he could. “Knock it back down!”

“A-Again? Uh…” Deuce hurriedly brandished his pen, turning off the flashlight on his phone and shoving it into his uniform pocket. The ink monster had broken free, and was currently making its way through the mines where we were at now. Ace blinked when he felt me shift on his back, and his eyes widened when he saw that I was awake. “Is there anything heavier than a cauldron? Oh, man…”

“O-Oi, Eleanor, what do we do!?” Huh? Why is Ace asking me? “Gah- it’s here!”

_“Give it baAAACK!”_

Deuce let out a shout, stepping back, and he pointed the magical pen at the ink monster in a panic. “C-Come forth: _cauldron!_ A-And another _cauldron!_ A-And-And-And a-a third _cauldron!_ A fourth _cauldron!”_ One after another the giant metal pots came materializing out of thin air, slamming down hard and crashing onto the ink monster. It roared as it collapsed to the ground, buried underneath the many pots.

Ace looked at Deuce exasperated. “Do you have nothing but cauldrons in your repertoire!?”

“Sh-Shut up, I panicked!”

Grim opened his mouth and let loose a huge blast of flames, letting them envelope the monster. “We got the crystal, so let’s skedaddle! Hurry!”

“Aye, aye!” Ace said, breaking out in another run. “Ugh, I’m starting to lose my grip…! Oi, Deuce, switch with me!”

“Hah!?” I blinked, looking between them in confusion, and watched as the blue-haired teen sent Ace a weird look. “Switch what!?”

“Her! She’s too heavy to carry and run!”

I would normally take offense to that, but he _was_ helping me so I’ll let it pass. “...S-Sorry…!”

Deuce sighed, running closer to Ace and holding his arms out. “Fine, just give her here! I can’t believe we’re doing this with a teacher…”

“She’s a janitor!” Ace corrected, slowing to a stop. He squatted down, loosening his grip on my legs and letting me slide off his back. I coughed into my shoulder as that happened, still wheezing a bit, and the ginger took that time to stretch out his arms and roll his shoulders- several of his bones popping as a result. “Ahh~ that’s so much better. Man, my arms are gonna be sore tomorrow…”

“S-Sor…” I coughed again. I flinched, weakly reaching up and fumbling to put my mask on. “Sor… ry.”

His red eyes glanced down at me. He then turned away, placing his hands on his hips with a scoff. “Yeah, well… it’s fine, I guess. You did come up with that plan to get the crystal, so. Only time I’m doing that kind of thing!”

“The cauldrons won’t hold that thing for long! We need to keep going.” Deuce startled me a little when he slid a hand under my knees and behind my back, hoisting me up into his arms easily. I wasn’t expecting him to carry me like that, nonetheless lift me up as if I weighed nothing. Ace had been struggling to keep me on his back, but Deuce was clearly stronger than he looked. “...! Did you guys hear that?”

Grim let out a small shriek, peering out from behind Deuce’s head. “We made it angry!”

Ace waved his arm, breaking out into another dash. “Let’s go, go, go!”

We barely made it to the outside before the ink monster caught up. Everyone looked on in horror as it tore through the mine entrance, letting loose a terrifying battle cry. We hadn’t just made it angry; no, we made it _rage_. It wanted us dead so bad that it wouldn’t stop until all that was left of us were chunks of flesh and bone.

“Y-You’ve gotta be kidding!” Ace cried. “It knocked off all that stuff, too!?”

The ink monster was swinging wildly at this point, not caring what it struck so long as we wound up being part of it. _“Give… it… BACK! GIVE IT BACK! IT’S MIIINE!”_ The boys tried running again and we had made it as far as the cottage, but the ink monster wasn’t letting up. It was heading straight towards us with murder on its mind.

“It’s gonna catch up to us!” Deuce exclaimed.

Damn it… what do we do!? What _should_ we do!? It’ll kill us if we don’t stop it first, but…

No. No way. That was a very bad idea. Yet there was no way we would be able to make it to the mirror before it caught up to us- and if we did make it back it could destroy the mirror, which would only put us into more trouble with the headmaster. Worse, we might end up taking it back to the school with us by accident. It might attack and hurt every student in sight. Frick!

I coughed into my mask, clinging tight to Deuce’s shoulders as he took several steps back from the rampaging ink monster. If I looked closely I could make out several more cracks long the ink monster’s jar of a face, which meant it _did_ sustain some damage from all those cauldrons Deuce sent flying earlier. “If… If we break its face in, then… then we might be able to get away!”

Ace groaned, letting out a frustrated yell and ruffling his hair. “Fine! Let’s just finish it! Don’t let me down, Juice!”

“I’ve _told_ you before,” The blue-haired teen snapped, carefully setting me down on my feet, pulling out his magical pen, “my name is _Deuce!”_

“Hmph!” Grim huffed, hopping off of Deuce’s shoulder and walking over to Ace. “I’ll show you guys my true power!”

“S-Same as before,” I wheezed, crawling over to a nearby boulder and sitting down on it, “cauldrons, fire tornado…! D-Deuce, make sure… make sure you aim for that… that thing’s head, okay? If we… can crack the jar… all the ink will spill out and that might… it might…”

I was too breathless to finish.

Thankfully the boy understood my message and nodded firmly, determination burning in their eyes as they got into stances. Grim let loose a huge blast of flame and Ace grinned, swinging the magical pen and redirecting the fire with his wind, startling the ink monster and causing it to roar and thrash, trying to get rid of the heat. Lucky for us the wind really _did_ make the flames more powerful, and the fiery vortex had lit the ink monster’s clothes aflame.

Deuce took a deep breath, furrowing his brows and pointing his pen at the monster. “Okay. I can do this… the biggest and largest cauldrons I can think off…! Ha! Here we go: _cauldron! Cauldron! Cauldroooon!”_

I wasn’t sure what it was I was feeling at this moment. Fear? Excitement? Panic? Nervousness? It might have even been pride. Watching these three work together to take down this ink monster, dealing blow after blow after blow, forcing it to stumble back and collapse under all the pressure- it just caused some sort of sensation to well up inside of me, bringing a large trembling smile onto my face. By all means I still wanted to cry, but like…

I actually felt _happy_ seeing them take that creature down.

“We’re doing it!” Grim laughed. “W-We’re actually doing it!”

“Keep those cauldrons coming!” Ace shouted.

The monster’s face was covered in cracks at this point. Ink was seeping out little at a time, and with a just bit more effort the glass would shatter completely. “On it!” Deuce summoned several more cauldrons, and somewhere in the next round of them… ink splattered in the air, shards being sent flying as the heavy objects crashed through its wounded jar of a face. Everyone froze, the fiery vortex dying down, and we all watched with bated breath as the ink monster gurgled and choked, losing all of the black liquid that hid in its glass head.

And then… the black that was its very being… seemed to drift slowly in the air, gradually fading away until nothing- not even its clothes or weapons- remained. Deuce breathed heavily, Ace and Grim huffing and puffing, and they all stared at where the ink monster once was. I stood with wide eyes, stumbling over and wondering if that really just happened.

“We… did it?” Ace asked, blinking several times as if to check if he were hallucinating. “We won…?”

Grim’s eyes lit up. He threw his paws up, squealing. “W-We won! We actually won!”

“Heck yeaaaah!” Deuce cheered, pumping his fists into the air. “We beat it! We lived!”

O-Oh my gosh. “I… It’s gone!”

Ace broke out into laughter, absolutely enthralled by this turn out. “We did it!”

Grim jumped onto my shoulder, holding his paws out for the boys to see, a huge shark-like grin on his face. “Victory high-five!”

Neither Ace or Deuce held back, too caught up in their excitement and relief, and smacked their hands onto the cat monster’s paws. “Yaaaay!” They cheered in unison. I lowered my mask from my face, beaming at the two boys brightly, in a far better mood than I had been since coming to this world. I can’t believe we actually survived this encounter.

I can’t believe they actually worked together to _beat_ that monster! A-And just look at them now! Oh my gosh. I can’t- dude, my heart is going through so many feelings right now and my lungs still hate me, but I don’t really care because _look_ at how we survived!

I smiled widely, almost giggling I was so freaking happy, and I waved my arms excitedly through the air. “You guys were so awesome! Y-You were like _bam_ with the cauldrons a-and then you two were all _swoosh_ with the flames and the wind, a-and… and…! Aghhhh, it was so cool! You worked together so well!”

I pressed my palms gently to my cheeks, face muscles hurting from smiling so wide.

“It’s like the start of a beautiful friendship!”

They all jumped at that. Deuce’s face flushed red. “I-It’s not like that!”

“Y-Yeah,” Ace stammered, trying very hard to make himself look angry and failing terribly, “could you stop s-saying such weird things?”

“We won because of _my_ genius!” Grim declared, also quite flustered, and in the midst of his speech Ace and Deuce lost their “stern” expressions and broke out into smiles themselves, chuckling quietly in their amusement. “I-It’s not because we “worked together” or anything cheesy like that!”

Ace rested a hand to the back of his head, ruffling his hair with a sheepish grin. “I guess... making excuses would be pretty lame. As much as I hate to admit it, it was thanks to your plan that we won.”

What? Oh gosh, I was seriously just panicking when I came up with the plan. They put me on the spot back then and I didn’t know what to say. I did not deserve such praise. “I-I didn’t-”

“He’s right.” Deuce nodded in agreement with Ace and I looked up at him with wide eyes. “It’s because you gave us those instructions that we were able to get the magic crystal at all. And… thanks to you…” His shoulders slumped over and he let out a heavy sigh. “...we’ll be able to avoid expulsion! I-I’m so relieved…”

“Are… Are you all okay, though?” We were all pretty battered in our own way.

“We’re fine.” Ace said, before suddenly letting out a yawn. “Bit bruised, mostly tired. I think you got the worst of it, El.”

El? What happened to calling me Eleanor? Why did he go from screwing up my name to calling me by a nickname? I’m so confused.

“Let’s just go back to the school already.” The ginger finished. “I’m so hungry.”

Ah. I blinked, grimacing as I realized just how empty my stomach was from all that exercise and stressing. “Same…”

“I’m starving!” Grim whined. “I used up so much magic today, my tummy is mad at me…”

We were all complaining, but the smiles and grins never left our faces. At least, not until Grim suddenly twitched his nose and turned towards the direction where the ink monster had faded, walking over the small bridge towards it.

“What is that smell…?”

We followed him curiously, and the cat monster picked up a small black stone. Deuce frowned. “A remnant from that creature? I’ve never seen a magic crystal of that color before… it’s as black as coal.”

“...I don’t trust it.” I said, scrunching up my nose. Grim held it up to his face, sniffing it.

“It smells really good.”

Ace’s eyes widened. “You’re kidding!”

Grim suddenly gasped. “What if it’s candy!? The monster must have been hiding it on its person the entire time, the jerk! Hmph. Well, it’s mine now! Bottom’s up~!” He popped the stone into his mouth. Everyone shouted and recoiled, and I waited no time in lunging forward, trying to pry open his mouth.

“No! No, bad kitty! Out! Spit it out!”

Grim made a sound like he was choking and I shrieked, letting him go in my panic, and he brought his paws up to his mouth- swallowing. Ace and Deuce were just as alarmed. “H-Hey, are you alright?” The blue-haired teen asked. Ace shook his head, exasperated.

“And that’s why you don’t eat things off the ground.”

“I-It’s… It’s… it’s…” It took a minute for Grim to regain his bearings. His eyes lit up and he shouted, jumping up-and-down. “It’s so yuummmmy~!”

Everybody was alarmed.

Grim started to rant, freaking out about the flavor. “It’s full-bodied and rich, and with an aromatic sweetness that just _blooms_ in your mouth. It’s like I’ve eaten an entire field of flowers~!”

“Blegggh~!” Ace pointed a finger at his mouth, making gagging noises. “Gross. Monsters really do have different taste buds from us, huh?”

“I guess,” Deuce said, placing a hand on his hip, “but most people wouldn’t thoughtlessly put a mysterious object in their mouth.”

I made a face, disturbed by Grim and his behavior. “I don’t think Grim counts as “most people”. More than that, does he even actually think?”

Ace snorted at that. Grim broke out into laughter, not at all listening to anything we were saying. “It’s so good~! Ahaha! Wait, why are you guys looking at me like that? My stomach isn’t weak like yours, I’ll have you know!”

“Don’t come crawling to me when you get sick later.” Ace said, waving a hand in the air dismissively. Deuce smiled.

“Anyway, we should get this crystal back to the headmaster. The sun is about to set.”

…

I have never been more happy to see the place that had started this never ending nightmare. I stumbled out of the magic mirror behind Ace and Deuce, Grim on my shoulder, and almost fell over as a result. Thankfully the two boys were used to my clumsiness by now, and Ace reached out and caught me by the arm.

“Hey, careful! I’m not gonna carry you if you pass out again.”

“I-I passed out?”

Deuce nodded. “Yes.” He frowned, bringing a hand up to his chin. “Back when we went to get the crystal after we executed the plan the first time. You don’t remember?”

“You’re such a useless human.” Grim sighed, shaking his head. He lightly bopped my skull with his paw. “Honestly. The only good thing about you is that brain of yours.”

“...Gee, thanks.” I sent him a sour look. “Nice to know I’m appreciated.”

The cat monster merely grinned. “You’re welcome!”

Tch. I really don’t like him. I pulled my arm away from Ace’s grasp and looked at the ground, biting down on my bottom lip awkwardly. I really didn’t like asking for help and knowing that I actually did need it bothered me greatly. I wanted to do things myself. But this event really did just rub in my face that I can’t do anything alone. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath, glancing up at Ace and Deuce before looking back at the ground. “I… I just…”

The two boys looked at me, confused. I tried to fight against my own stubbornness, and after a minute I looked up again- eyes a little watery as I remembered what had happened.

“I’m… I-I’m really glad y-you guys… came back. I-If you hadn’t, then…”

Their eyes widened. Ace hurriedly turned away, ruffling the hair on the back of his head, while Deuce coughed into his fist, his face a bit flushed. “Y-Yes, well,” The blue-haired teen started, “I said we wouldn’t leave you to die, didn’t I?”

“Yeah.” Ace cleared his throat. “I only saved you because this idiot decided he was gonna rush into the danger to stage a rescue by himself.”

That… made me smile a little. These two were… These two were such dorks, weren’t they? Jeez. I brought an arm up, wiping at my teary eyes with my dirtied sleeve. “S-Still, thank you. You… You guys are amazing.”

Ooh, that got to them. Ace’s ruffling of his own hair got a bit more aggressive before he suddenly shouted, startling all of us, and I yelped when he marched over, pulling me into a chokehold, very obviously flustered by the compliments. “That’s it! Come on. If you keep saying any more of this mushy stuff I’mma throw up! The headmaster should be in his office, right? Then let’s look there!”

“Don’t be so rough with her, Ace!” Deuce said, even though he himself was laughing. “She’ll collapse again.”

Grim rolled his eyes at us, his smile betraying his words. “You’re all idiots.”

“Says you!” I retorted.

“Oi, what was that, human!?” He demanded. I snickered, breaking out into giggles and almost regretting it as my lungs burned, causing me to cough and wheeze, but it was fine. For once it didn’t bother me at all. I had Ace and Deuce to cling on to, to help me when I couldn’t walk, and together we made our way to the headmaster’s office, laughing and joking and recalling the crazy battle that had just happened minutes ago. “Ah- we’re here!”

“We are!” I exclaimed, grinning giddily. “Let’s do this. Okay. Deuce, Deuce, you got the crystal?”

“Of course!” He held it up proudly, showing of the symbol of our victory.

“Okay. You all ready?” We were standing outside the door. Ace and Grim nodded, the ginger releasing me from his grip. “Alright! Let’s’a do this! Headma-wait, I can’t knock. Frick. Can one of you-?”

Deuce did the honors, just like he did back at the abandoned cottage. “Headmaster! We’ve returned.”

“Eh? A-Ah, come in, come in!” Headmaster Crowley said, surprised to hear our voices. Deuce opened the door and we entered, and he and all the other adults in the room looked quite startled by our dirtied appearances. The headmaster’s eyes turned into little golden pinpricks, alarmed, the man standing up from his desk. “What happened to you all?”

Deuce showed off our trophy. “We obtained the magic crystal you asked for!”

“You… You actually went to the Dwarfs’ Mine?” Headmaster Crowley was shook. The two men he was talking to stared at us. One was an older gentlemen dressed almost entirely in red, carrying a large tuxedo cat in his arms. His salt-and-pepper hair was slicked back and he wore a very stern expression on his face. The man next to him, on the other hand, had to be closer to the headmaster’s age; what with his fair skin, dark eyeshadow, and bi-colored black-and-white hair. “And you actually found a magic crystal?”

We looked at him incredulously.

“I didn’t think you would actually… huh.” He gave us a sheepish smile. “And to think while you were away working so hard I went and quietly completed the paperwork for your expulsions.”

I blinked, leaned my head back, and then raised my eyebrows as I thought about the sheer audacity he had to tell us that to our faces. So much for him being kind. “Okay, first of all; _rude.”_

“The nerve of this guy!” Grim exclaimed, irritable. “And while we were off fighting some crazy beast!”

“Beast?” Headmaster Crowley was surprised.

The man with the bi-colored hair stepped up, tapping a riding a crop into the palm of his gloved hand, frowning deeply as he narrowed his grey eyes at us. He was… really attractive, holy frick. It was sort of uncomfortable. That striped fur coat he was wearing was _hideous_ and he was somehow making it work. How? No one should be able to pull that off.

“Explain yourself, puppies.” The man demanded, voice deeper than expected. “What sort of monster did you encounter? Don’t hold back on the details now- or their _will_ be punishment.”

W-Was that a _dog collar_ attached to the end of that riding crop thing? Oh my gods. Wait- what did he just call us? Ugh, I can feel another headache forming. Why is he wearing stripes, anyway? Spots seemed more… fitting. Not that I’m complaining, this person was gorgeous. Probably one of the most beautiful men I’ve ever seen. Those eyes of his seemed to stare into our very souls, judging us for all we were worth.

I don’t know who this person is, where he came from, or who gave him the right to be so ungodly attractive, but I am both now simultaneously uncomfortable and flustered, and I really want to hide in a corner away from the world. My brain was going into a weird place. I took a small step back, hiding behind Deuce as I became very intimidated by this stranger.

I swear- that man could _step_ on me and I wouldn’t get mad.

I don’t even know him! That’s the scariest part. I mentally thanked Ace when he started speaking, the ginger serving as a distraction from my less than wholesome thoughts. I was very disturbed by how quickly my mind went into gutter. It’s never done that before.

“We already told you!” Ace said, scowling. “There was a monster there! It was super gross and crazy strong; it was awful!”

“And it was covered in ink.” Deuce supplied, grimacing. “We barely managed to defeat it. When we first went into the mines there were these ghosts and Ace scared them away with his wind magic, but when we went deeper in where the magic crystal was hiding…”

“The monster was there guarding it!” Ace finished. “It came at us out of nowhere swinging this super huge pick ax! It almost cleaved her in half!” He jabbed a thumb in my direction and Deuce stepped away, forcing me to be part of the conversation as all the staff members eyes turned to me. I tensed.

“Y-Yeah, it was… not very fun.” I cleared my throat. Can I please go back into hiding now? Grim blinked and turned to scowl at Ace, realization dawning.

“If you and Deuce didn’t run off without her when you did, that wouldn’t have happened.”

“Oi!” Ace pointed at him angrily. “I don’t want to hear that from you!”

“Yes.” Deuce nodded, frowning. “You left her alone as well.”

“You all left me alone.” I stated, raising my hands up in a half-hearted shrug. “It was kinda rude, ya know?”

“But the three of you… went back to rescue her?” Headmaster Crowley inquired, stepping forward and walking around his desk to approach us, standing between the other two teachers.

I mean, I’m assuming they’re teachers. How they could be considered teachers when one has a dog collar attached to a freaking _riding crop_ while another is carrying a pet cat I’m not sure, but hey- whatever. We’re in school full of magic and talking monsters. Anything can happen.

Ace, Deuce, and Grim stopped arguing, pausing and looking away sheepishly.

“I-It was just for the crystal.” Ace stammered.

I made a face at that. “And here I thought we were friends.”

“Anyway!” Deuce cleared his throat, continuing the story. “After we grabbed Miss Quince we… uh, what did we do again? I don’t remember.”

Grim blinked. “That was when we retreated wasn’t it? And then she came up with the plan for us to trick the monster out of the mine?”

I cringed, recalling my horrible plan that somehow managed to work. “Don’t remind me.”

“Stop jabbering and tell us what happened.” The older man demanded. “Before your voices irritate my dear Lucius’ ears.”

He must mean the cat! Okay. I’m learning. Ace and Deuce tensed and looked at each, sighing simultaneously.

Ace spoke up, placing a hand on his side where he had been hit. “The monster _was_ seriously crazy though. We had Grim go into the cave and it chased him out, where we then used El as bait. Once it was far enough out Grim and I combined our magic to create a whirlwind of fire, and Deuce dropped a cauldron on it. Then we went in and grabbed the stone, ran out, and since it was still chasing us we beat the crap out of it.”

“It was the same strategy as before, but we had a better idea of where to hit it.” Deuce added, He flashed a small smile towards me. “She told us to shatter the glass jar that was its head, and once we did that all the ink pooled out and it… vanished.”

I shifted in place awkwardly. “I-I honestly thought we were going to die.”

“So what you’re telling me is…” Headmaster Crowley began, hand to his chin, looking as surprised as his coworkers by this information. “You four worked together to defeat that monster, so you could bring back a magic crystal?”

“W-We didn’t really _work together_ work together,” Ace stammered, “it was just… um…”

“More like… our interests aligned?” Deuce suggested. Really? We were all getting along so well earlier- literally moments before we entered the office. Now they were going to act like none of it even happened. My shoulders slumped and I stared at them, a small pout trying to form on my face. “Uh…”

When the headmaster didn’t make a single comment or movement to acknowledge what they said, everyone grew concerned. But then the masked man was stumbling backwards towards his desk, bringing a hand up to his face. Headmaster Crowley started choking up, whimpering and loudly sobbing as his purple lips curled back, sharp teeth gritting together for only a moment before he decided to just openly wail.

The black-and-white aesthetically dressed man sighed, tapping the riding crop into his gloved palm again. “Dire… what are you doing?”

“I-I’m crying, obviously!” He sobbed. “I-I just- I can’t believe this, Divus! Do you r-realize what this means!? M-My adorable students… uwaaaah~!”

The men on either side of him looked deeply annoyed. The man in red especially. “Please regain your composure. You’re in _front_ of those very students.”

“Wh-Why is he crying?” Grim asked, very much bothered by this. “Isn’t he an adult?”

Excuse me? I flashed him a look. “Adults are allowed to cry! Everyone has a right to their own emotions. That _includes_ men.”

Nobody said anything in response to that. Good. I was going to have to kick whoever did. Headmaster Crowley sniffled, wiping at his face carefully- so as to not cut himself with his sharp metal claws. “I-In all my years as headmaster… not once did the students of Night Raven College go hand-in-hand together to face and defeat their enemy! To think this day would finally come...”

Oh. Wow, um, okay. I guess the students in this place are sort of snobbish, then. It makes sense. But still… seeing the headmaster cry was a little unnerving. I was so much more used to his smile. Deuce and Ace, on the other hand, couldn’t seem to care less.

“I-I did not hold this guy’s hand!”

“That’s just gross! What on earth are you saying!?”

“I-I’m just… overwhelmed with emotion!” Headmaster Crowley exclaimed, defending himself. “I’m so proud of you all.” He suddenly gasped, standing upright. “You know what? This incident just confirms my theory. Miss Quince.”

I tensed, meeting bright yellow eyes nervously. “Y-Yes?”

He beamed. “You clearly have the talent of a beast tamer!”

“...Say what?” Didn’t he mention that back when Grim dealt with the dorm ghosts? I’m pretty sure he did.

“Students of Night Raven College are called here by the mirror to learn magic.” He said, moving to stand right in front of me. “However, these magicians are egotistical and prideful people, and as such have not the slightest _inkling_ of desire to work with other people. This causes many of them to become selfish and self-centered. But you got these two to work together.”

“O-Oh. Wait.” My eyebrows furrowed and I looked behind me at the trio I had been working with earlier. “So…”

I bit my bottom lip, narrowing my eyes suspiciously, before looking up at the headmaster.

“You’re saying… that I _tamed_ them?”

He grinned. “Yes.”

“...Pffft!” There was no holding it in. I was not expecting that. Oh my gosh. Holy frick- that was too good. Everyone was surprised by my sudden outbreak of laughter, but I didn’t care. I giggled and snorted, hunching over slightly with a hand hovering in front of my face, snickering uncontrollably as I turned to face the troublesome trio. Deuce was totally confused, but the others? Hoh, Ace and Grim were less than happy. “H-He called ya’ll beasts! Bwahaha! I love it!”

Grim made a face. “Neither of you are really saying anything that nice…”

“S-Sorry, sorry, I-I just-!” I laughed again, tears welling up in my eyes. It just wouldn’t stop. The laughter kept coming and coming, and it hurt and it was burning, but it had been just so stupidly funny and I couldn’t take it anymore. My lips curled back and I choked, crying as I continued to laugh. “I-I’m so… I’m sorry…!”

“Oi.” Ace marched over, planting a hand on my head. “Remind me again who it was that saved you from the ink monster?”

“Y-You… guys…! Y-You did…!” It hurts. Make it stop. Ace’s eyes went wide when I fell to a knee, an arm pressed to my chest as I gasped, coughing and wheezing as the pain and laughs kept coming. “I-I can’t…!”

“Miss Quince?” Deuce.

Footsteps glided along the floor and the headmaster was there, kneeling beside me with a hand curled on my shoulder. “Miss Quince, what is the matter? You must breathe!”

That’s the problem. I can’t. I can’t breathe. It hurts.

“Dire, she’s having an attack!”

“I can see that! Miss Quince-”

“Step aside!”

The hand on my shoulder disappeared. Instead a new one took its place, gloved fingers firmly grasping my jaw and forcing me to look up into a pair of cold grey eyes, black spots dancing in my vision as the world around my threatened to give way. “Look at me.” I-I can’t- there’s too many- too many faces! Who is- huh? “Everything is alright.”

It’s not… It’s not alright! Everything is _not_ alright! I tried to pull away, the fingers tightened their grip and I flinched, being forced to look at the stranger.

“Do you hear me, pup? Are you listening? Focus on my voice.”

Voice… his voice… okay…

“Good. Now, I want you to breathe in deeply, alright? Best as you can.”

It was hard to nod and even harder to do as asked, as I ended up gasping and nearly coughing in the process.

“Exhale.” 

He released me, letting me fall forward and cough, sputtering as I tried to regain my bearings. A smirk curled onto his face.

“That’s a very good girl. Are you still focusing on my voice?” Another nod. “Alright. I understand that you’re going through a lot at the moment, but it is going to be okay. We teachers are here to help you. The _school_ is here to help you. Now sit up. Can you do that?”

Barely. I felt so dizzy. Dizzy and hot and cold,and my heart wouldn’t stop pounding. As I sat on my knees I found myself staring blearily at the intimidating man from before, alongside Ace, Deuce, and Grim who were hiding behind him. What just…? Ow. Ow, ow, oww… I’m so shaky. My breathing was still all over the place too, but I was significantly calmer than what I was. The laughter was gone now.

“Miss Quince…?” Ah. Headmaster Crowley. He was frowning, arms folded over his chest stiffly as he watched the scene take place.

“Hush, Dire.” Divus ordered. “You had your chance. You knew the pup was alone here and had health problems, and yet all you gave her was a silly looking mask? Hmph. I respect you as the headmaster, but honestly sometimes you can be so… short-sighted.”

“I-Is she alright?” Deuce stammered.

I stared blankly at the floor, having trouble trying to focus on more than one voice with the migraine pounding my skull in. Divus stood, crossing an arm over his chest while using the other to wave the riding crop through the air. “She’ll be fine. In due time, anyhow. Mozus, can you run to my lab for me…? There should be a book about the respiratory system on the top shelf near my desk.”

“Wh… Why…?” I had finally gained enough air to speak again. The man turned to look down at me, humming and raising a very well-trimmed eyebrow.

“Why? Well, if I know Dire the way I think I do, we’re going to need you to be in tip-top shape. Isn’t that right?” He smirked at the headmaster. “Now, I’ll stand with you until Mozus returns, alright, pup? Do you think you can finish listening to the headmaster’s speech in the meantime?” 

No words. I simply nodded, silence filling the room. Deuce, Ace, and Grim looked more worried than they would probably ever admit, and after about three minutes Headmaster Crowley awkwardly began to speak again, Mozus leaving the room. “As I was saying before… I believe you have the talents of a beast tamer. You have tamed these selfish, egotistical students, after all, even though you can not use magic.”

Ace leaned over to Deuce, whispering with a scowl. “He’s really trying to insult us, isn’t he?”

“But maybe it’s precisely because you _can’t_ use magic… that you might be able to give instructions to these mages and get them to cooperate! That mediocrity could be exactly what this school needs!”

Grim made a face. “He’s insulting everyone!”

Headmaster Crowley stepped forward, pretending not to notice Divus’ intense stare, and held his arms out. “I have no doubt… that your very presence here is essential to this academy’s future! My teacher-senses tell me so. Which is why… I must also apologize, since… it is clear we have put you through so much in such a short time. You are only human.”

“B-But…” I’m so confused. My head can’t keep up. I feel so drained. “The… dorm…”

He smiled. “You get to stay there, yes.” Oh. That’s good. “And along with the rescinding of the expulsions for Mr. Trappola and Mr. Spade…I will make you a student here at Night Raven College!”

The trio shouting in their shock was the only thing that informed that I hadn’t misheard. Divus sighed, bringing the riding crop up and tapping it lightly against his chin. “Just as I thought. It is an all boys school, but it is also just like you to pull something like this. Here’s to hoping some of the more rotten pups keep their tails tucked and paws to themselves. Otherwise I _might_ have to have a little… chat with them.”

I took that moment to move a step away from him. My head tilted to the side and I blinked groggily, cogs turning a little too slow to keep up, and I blinked. “W-Wait… I can’t… hold on.” I pressed a wrist to my forehead, migraine getting worse by the second. “I-I can’t… be a student here. I-I’m not… I’m not old enough. No, not young enough. Eugh, I can’t think…”

As cool as going to a mage academy was, I couldn’t even use magic. More than that, I already suffered my time through high school. I hated every second of it.

“Eh?” Headmaster Crowley blinked, and the other teacher turned to me in surprise. “What do you mean? Are you not sixteen?”

“N-No, I… I’m nineteen. I already… graduated. And… And you said yourself that I can’t use magic, so-”

The masked man hummed thoughtfully for a moment. He then waved me off. “That is fine. I have students that are more than a couple hundreds of years old. A human being a little older than the rest is no bother. Besides, I am exceedingly kind; filling out such paperwork is not below me. But I do have one condition- since you can not become a mage, you will not be able to complete all your lessons. Therefore… Grim?”

The cat monster jumped, sitting up straight on Ace’s shoulder. “Eh? Me?”

Headmaster Crowley placed his hands on his hips, frowning. “You have proven to me you have enough talent to become a mage. Therefore,” He grinned, extending his arms out again, “I shall allow you two to enroll together as one student!”

Whoa. We all turned to look at Grim, who was visibly shook and touched by the man’s words. “I… I can… actually go to this school, too? Not… Not as a janitor, but as a student?”

“Yes! But only if you _swear_ that an incident like before never happens again.” He glared down at the cat monster. “Do we have an understanding?”

Grim’s eyes started to water and fill with tears. “Fn… Fnnaaaagh! I-I und… I understand…!” 

I’m… I’m sorry, I’m actually going to be a student here? I don’t…

I can’t…

Huh?

Grim pumped his paws into the air, dancing on Ace’s shoulder and irritating the ginger. “I did it, I did it, I’m becoming a mage~!”

“Will you settle down!?” Ace snapped, picking him up by the bow. “Jeez, you’re gonna give me a neck cramp.”

Headmaster Crowley approached the teens, smiling. “Grim, as a symbol of your status as a student at Night Raven College, I will give you this magic crystal.” He snapped his fingers and a light bloomed around the cat monster’s neck, soon fading away to show a small gem dangling against his white-furred chest. It looked identical to what Ace and Deuce had, only the gem was colored purple instead of red. “It is the norm for students to have their crystals attached to their magical pens, but… you wouldn’t be able to grip it with your paws, would you?”

His grin broadened.

“It’s a special custom-made crystal!”

Grim started singing and dancing about again despite being held by his bow, so Ace decided to just set the cat monster on the floor. “I’ve got a magic crystal collar~! I’ve got a magic crystal collar~!”

“...He isn’t listening at all.” The headmaster noted, frowning. He sighed and turned towards me, his voice snapping me out of my thoughts. “You see what I mean? Grim isn’t accustomed to human society at all. It’s up to you to reel him in and prevent him causing anymore trouble.”

Ace started laughing. “Wow~ look at you! You just got enrolled into the school and you’re already a supervisor?”

“I see…” Deuce brought a hand up to his chin. “There are only the two of you in your dorm. So being entrusted to supervise Grim _would_ make you a supervisor, wouldn’t it?”

I’m gonna throw up.

Ace snickered. “Talk about underheard of. A supervisor that can’t even use magic? Pfft~!” He walked over, plopping his free hand onto my head, grinning. “Hey~ relax! It’s cool. A dorm leader who can’t use magic; we’ll be counting on you!”

I looked up at him, utterly distraught. “It’s gonna end in disaster…”

He laughed. He looked a lot more sympathetic than before, but his teasing tone never left. “You’ve got this! I believe in you.”

Headmaster Crowley hummed. “A supervisor, eh? There is something I want to ask of you to do, Miss Quince, and having a title does make it very convenient.”

Divus fixed him with a look. “One thing at a time. We do not want to _break_ the pup again, now do we? And please give her some space, Mr. Trappola.” Ace jumped and backed away, not about to argue with this man.

The headmaster sighed. “Then would you like to go ahead and use that potion I so kindly asked you to bring before I continue? She won’t be able to write on her tests or do any homework if she is unable to use her hands.”

“But of course.” Divus said. He turned to face me, aura several times more intimidating up close now that I could actually _kind of_ think, and I almost choked when he brandished the riding crop- pressing it under my chin and forcing me to raise my head. “Hands, pup. Let me see them.”

They were out there faster than you could blink.

Divus carefully unwrapped the bandages, tsk’ing when he saw the way the stitches were placed. “The school nurse did _not_ do this. Dire, please tell me you didn’t ruin this poor pup’s hands with your terrible needle skills?”

These two were at each others _throats._ Either Divus was in a bad mood today or they just didn’t get along normally. Headmaster Crowley folded his arms over his chest, scowling. “She would have bled to death if I did not do something. I was merely trying to help.”

“Excuses.” Divus ran his fingers along the stitches and I flinched. “The poor pup is going to have scars by the time I’m through with her now. Hmph.”

Uh, what? Wait- what exactly was he going to do to me? I’m scared.

Suddenly… the wires that were used to tie my flesh together vanished. The wounds that had long since opened began to pool blood, and the trio behind us gasped- as if realizing just how bad of shape my hands really were in. Grim looked especially guilty, cringing and turning away. Divus pressed his riding crop to his side, holding it there with his elbow, and pulled a small vial out from his vest, uncorking the vial and pouring a little bit of the green liquid onto my hands.

I inhaled sharply, feeling the cool liquid seep into my burning flesh, and I held back a hiss as it startled to bubble. I watched in shock as the skin started to weld itself back together, slowly closing and scabbing over until all that was left were some nasty scars- forever marring what once was smooth skin.

Divus corked the bottle, tucking the remainder of the potion into his vest. “You should be able to use your hands now without feeling any pain. Try it.”

A bit awkward, I did as told- flexing my fingers and massaging my palms with my thumbs. My eyes widened and I looked up at the man and then back at my hands, shaking my wrists and testing out each finger individually as I bent them. “Wh… What… did you do? What was that?”

“Oh, you’ll learn later on in the school year. You’ll be having me as a teacher after all.” He smirked. “I’ll be expecting only the best from you, little puppy. Do try not to disappoint Master Crewel too much.”

...There was no way I was going to survive that class. I’m calling it now.

I bit my bottom lip and ducked my head down, trying to distract myself by fiddling with my hands, basking in the fact that I was able to move them without wanting to cry. It felt so nice. “Y-Yes, sir.” It was hard to protest or argue against someone with this kind of personality. I just felt so flustered.

“And one more thing.” Divus turned his head, turning to the head irritable headmaster. “Do tell me you’re not planning on making her wear the boys uniform?”

I… would have to wear a uniform at this school, wouldn’t I? “I-It’s… fine. I don’t mind-”

Never had that riding crop moved so fast. I went silent, the man shushing me with a look as the weapon pressed against my lips. “Shush. Dire, _answer_ my question. Are you planning on making her wear the boys uniform?”

Headmaster Crowley cleared his throat. “I-It might have come to mind… we don’t exactly have any girl uniforms in stock.”

Divus Crewel sighed, pulling the riding crop away and shaking his head. “You’re the absolute worst. That’s it; I’m taking matters into my own hands. What was your name, little pup? Eleanora Quince?” He grinned at me. “I’ll make you a uniform that will put _all_ uniforms to shame. Because someone- despite all their inherent kindness- fails to realize the most important things.”

He shot Headmaster Crowley a disapproving glance. I stood, absolutely dumbfounded, still in shock over the situation. Deuce and Ace looked at each other and Grim scrunched up his nose.

“How come _she_ gets a cool uniform?” The cat monster asked.

Ace gave him a weird look. “Of everything that’s happened… you’re focusing on _that?_ Seriously?”

“What? No, you’re right. My magic crystal collar is way cooler.”

Deuce sighed. “This is such a mess.”

Say that louder please!

This was a whirlwind of events. A tornado, even. 

My brain is still processing the flurry of information that was thrust at me not five minutes ago, and I’m still super sluggish and drained from the roller coaster of emotions I’ve been put through. My migraine was _killing_ me at this point. As such I don’t even want to begin trying to figure out what the headmaster had planned next. I’m still shook that Divus had been telling him off. Headmaster Crowley appeared very iffed by the man’s words.

“Th… Thank you?” I finally said, eyebrows furrowing. Divus grinned.

“But of course, little pup. Fashion is very important.”

“R… Right. A-And, um,” I looked nervously at Headmaster Crowley, fiddling with my fingers now that I could use them again, “you were… saying something before? Sorry. I-I… I’m sorry.”

“You’re perfectly fine, Miss Quince.” Headmaster Crowley sighed. He stepped forward, materializing some kind of object into his hands. As I was saying before, there is a job I want you to do and you having the title of “supervisor” works perfectly in accordance with it. From this moment on, Supervisor Quince, I will entrust you… with this.”

He handed me the item he had summoned and I stared, confused by the sight of an old fashioned camera. It was seriously old, the top colored in beige while the bottom part was brown, and there was a weird… mouse-shaped frame on the lenses? It looked so familiar, too, even more so than anything else. I could taste the bile bubbling its way up my throat, the urge to vomit growing greater the worse my migraine got. I was still burning up from the mines. A fever definitely seemed likely. "Why...? Wh-What..." I could hardly speak. 

“This is called the “ghost camera”.” He said. 

“Ah!” Ace gasped, him and Deuce walking over to get a better look. “I think my grandma told me about that. It’s a super old magical tool, right?”

If Headmaster Crowley didn’t look offended before with what happened with Divus, then he definitely looked offended now. “I-It is not “super old” thank you very much. But… it is true that it may have been invented in your great grandmother’s or even your great _great_ grandmother’s time. Miss Quince, this camera has a very special spell cast on it.”

“It... does?” I looked down at the lenses, doing my best to hide the pain I felt from my splitting skull. This mouse was the source of it all. I just know it. “Like what?”

“It doesn’t capture just the subject’s form,” He told me, tapping the camera, “but also a part of their soul.”

“A part of their soul?” Deuce questioned.

“We call this “Memory: A Fragment of Remembrance”!” Headmaster Crowley declared. “Furthermore, the most interesting part of this magic camera is that the souls of the photographer and the photographed become deeply connected, and the memory in the photo can come jumping out!”

“Wait, what?”

He chuckled. “Depending on how close the subject and photographer are, the pictures could move like a video… or bring to life the very situation in that photo. Fascinating, right?”

“Bring to life…?” Deuce murmured. His eyes widened. “That just makes the camera sound haunted!”

“Yes.” Divus stated, tapping the riding crop to his palm and raising an eyebrow at the teen. “That’s why it’s called a _ghost_ camera.”

Headmaster Crowley nodded, crossing his arms. “There are rumors that the reason it was made was so that people could leave behind vivid memories- seeing as actual video footage wasn’t available yet. In the past, people really _did_ bust out screaming “ghost” upon seeing the memory come jumping out. They were paralyzed with fear at the thought of having their pictures taken with this camera!”

...If that’s the case, why do you look so gosh darn happy about it?

Ace shook his head. “It’s a camera made for freaking people out.”

“Supervisor Quince!” Headmaster Crowley exclaimed, looking down at me once more. “Please take photos of all the students, so that way you can leave behind many memories of your time spent here in this academy.”

Oh dear. Grim curled his lips into a toothy grin, wandering over to my feet and snickering. “Make sure you take lots of cool photos of me~ got it? I won’t forgive you if they’re lame!”

Headmaster Crowley narrowed his eyes at the cat monster and looked me, frowning deeply. “Yes. And when you take pictures… make sure you also include the _trouble makers_. If anything suspicious is happening, snap a photo. Understand?” He smiled at me. “It’s the easiest way to report to me. I’m counting on you now. Keep and eye on your surroundings and take all the memories you can as supervisor.”

“Yes, sir…”

He brought a hand up dramatically again, sighing. “Ahhh, giving a rare magical item to someone who can’t use magic… does my kindness truly know no bounds!?”

“It… does not, sir. Truly you the kindest.”

Headmaster Crowley laughed loudly at that. Divus raised an eyebrow and looked down at me, hearing me encourage the headmaster’s weird antics, but before he could say anything the door opened. Mozu was standing there, large cat in in his arms, a book dangling from his left hand. “I’ve brought what you've asked for Divus.”

“Good. Puppy,” His attention turned to me once more, “I’ll be expecting you in my classroom before school starts so you can pick up your uniform. Until then, all of you remain out of trouble.” He waved the riding crop and walked away, taking the book from Mozus and following him out of the room. The headmaster watched them leave and faced those of us who were still in the room.

“Well, they are right… it is already very late. We’ll save the rest of the details for tomorrow. Return to your dormitories, everyone.”

Deuce nodded. “Pardon our intrusion.”

“And Miss Quince-” Headmaster Crowley’s voice stopped me from following the others, who had paused to see what was going on. His glowing yellow eyes bore into mine. “-Divus _is_ right. The school is at fault for bringing you here and as such you can come to us teachers should you ever need help. Do not be afraid to ask. We are _ever_ so kind, after all. Have a good night.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this is the longest chapter yet. O.o 
> 
> But anyway! DIVUS IS HERE!!! AND MOZUS! AND THE TROUBLESOME TRIO PLUS GRIM HAVE BEEN FORMED! Hopefully this chapter makes sense. Was somewhat hesitating to post it. Also in the middle of writing this chapter I realized the bow around Grim's neck is the uniform bow XD I'm so dumb.


	8. An Unexpected Guest

It was nighttime when we started to make our way through the school corridors. I was struggling to steady my breathing, brushing my thumbs against my new scars and massaging them. The ones on my palms were especially thick, which meant holding anything was going to feel pretty weird for a while, but I’d get used to them eventually. Who knows? They might even serve as a good reminder of my time here if I ever find a way back home.

Granted, no one from my world would ever _believe_ me and my family would probably stick me in a hospital out of concern for my well being, but still. It could just be my little secret.

“Are you truly okay, Miss Quince?” Deuce asked, frowning deeply. “You look so pale…”

“Y-Yeah, I’m… fine. I just-” I cleared my throat, giving him a weak smile. “I just wasn’t… expecting that. I guess all the stress kinda got to me, haha. But I’m good! Really. I promise. I’m used to it.”

“I-I see.” The blue-haired teen leaned his head back, sighing heavily. “Man, I’m beat...”

“Same. My side is still sore from that damn ink monster.” Ace groaned. “I am never fighting one of those things again.”

Deuce laughed at that before breaking out into a yawn, brushing his dirtied hair out of his face. “Hopefully we don’t have to. We already gave the magic crystal to the headmaster, so as long as nothing else breaks and requires replacing…”

I threw my hands up, lacing my fingers together and stretching, standing on my tip toes. “No more mines!” I declared. I then yelped, stumbling shortly after lowering my arms as a wave of dizziness washed over me. Grim, who had been singing happily, shouted when I nearly stepped on his tail. “S-Sorry!”

“Watch it, human! Are you trying to ruin my good mood?”

I stared blankly at him, before shrugging. He was the reason why we had all gotten into this mess at all, but… maybe we came out as better people because of it? It certainly made the headmaster happy. Heck, despite what Ace and Deuce kept saying, I think we all really were friends now. Grim wasn’t the only one in a good mood.

My empty expression split into something brighter, a smile wide on my tired face. I waved my hand at the cat monster. “Sorry, sorry~ keep doing your thing. I’ll try not to trip again.”

“Hmph!” He scoffed, turning away. “You better not. I’m gonna be a student here at Night Raven College starting tomorrow! Just you wait,” He whirled around, grinning a shark tooth grin, “I’m gonna climb to the top and leave you all in the dust!”

Ace placed a hand on his hip, chuckling. “You talk big for someone who is only _half_ a student. But sure. Go right ahead.”

Deuce looked down and smiled at me, crossing his arms over his chest. “We’re classmates starting tomorrow, it seems. Quite the turn of events.”

Oh frick, that’s right; these two guys are freshmen. I still can’t believe the headmaster is forcing me to go through high school all over again. I was not looking forward to any math tests; I don’t even know why my previous school let me graduate the first time! I’ve been failing that class since sixth grade and I never recovered. It’ll be a miracle if I manage to survive a second round of it.

But… if I could start the year with these two… it might not be so bad.

I picked up pace and moved ahead of the group, making sure to avoid stepping on Grim, and whirled around- holding my perfectly working hands towards the two teenagers. They blinked in surprise, red and blue eyes gazing at me in curiosity and confusion. I was smiling ear-to-ear, so much so that it was making my face muscles ache. It was taking all the self-restraint I had to not to start bouncing on my feet, the excitement bubbling up and being very hard to suppress.

“We should… We should re-introduce ourselves, right? Eleanora Quince, at your service!”

Ace groaned, feigning a cringe. “Do you _have_ to say the most embarrassing things?” He asked as he reached out and reluctantly took my left hand. “I swear, you’re so cheesy. But fine, Ace Trappola. There.”

“She really is!” Deuce chuckled, grabbing my other hand. He and Ace then shared a look before hesitantly grabbing each other’s remaining free hand. Standing in that little circle we shook each other’s hands, still talking. “But even if we don’t want to we’ll still be seeing each other every day. I’m even stuck in Heartslabyul with _this_ jerk.”

He nodded his head towards Ace, who scowled.

“He can’t even remember my name. Which is, of course, Deuce Spade.”

I snorted. The ginger didn’t find that amusing at all and flashed Deuce a mocking grin. “I am _so_ not looking forward to seeing your serious mug every day. No, thank you! I’ve had enough of your goody-two-shoes behavior to last me a lifetime.”

“That’s my line, you truant.”

They released my hands to tighten their hold on each other’s, as if testing their strength. Ace narrowed his eyes at him, the grin on his face broadening. “Yes, yes, whatever you say, Mr. I-almost-cried-because-I-was-nearly-expelled!” They continued to aggressively shake each other's hands, and they only let go when they heard me laugh.

“You guys are _adorable_.”

A hand on my head shut me up, Ace pulling me into a choke hold and ruffling my hair fiercely. “What was that!? I don’t think I could hear you through all that cheese you clearly keep eating!”

“H-Hey! Stop it, Ace~!” I ducked down, but he merely leaned down and pressed his weight onto my back, nearly making me lose balance. I clawed at his arm, kicking my leg. “Wh-What cheese!? D-Deuce~! Deuce, save me!”

The blue-haired teen shook his head at us before moving and putting Ace in a choke hold of his own. “You’re gonna make her collapse again, idiot!”

“I will not! Get off!”

I choked, smacking at the ginger’s arm. “L-Lemme go!”

“No! Surrender to your fate!” Ace demanded.

“N-No! Never! Raaah!” Ow, ow, shouting hurts, but frick this is entertaining. Gods, I’m getting… really dizzy again. “O-Okay! Okay, s-st… stop…! Stop!” Ace loosened his hold, feeling me slump. He blinked and watched in alarm as I started coughing, clinging to his arm for support as I gasped for air. Deuce released Ace as a result, and Grim stopped smiling, the boys all looking a bit concerned as I struggled to recover. “S-Sorry…”

“Hey, are you…” Ace frowned. “Are you seriously okay?”

Deuce pushed past the ginger, resting a hand on my shoulder and furrowing his brows. “Your face has gone ashen. Do you want help back to your dorm? I can carry you again.”

Didn’t he just say he was worn out? Jeez, this guy really... is... too nice. I said it in exaggeration when we first met, but he truly was a bit of an angel. Though I was definitely running a fever, I shifted my feet and moved to the side, forcing myself to release Ace’s arm lest I end up allowing myself to continue leaning on him for support. I wound up pulling away from Deuce in the process. “I-I’m… okay. I just… need to stop moving… for a bit.”

Ace squinted. “So… he _should_ carry you? Because I’m not doing that again. I’ll walk with you guys, but I’m not carrying squat. My arms still hurt from that.”

“You’re so dramatic.” Deuce sighed. “I hurt too, but I’m not just gonna let her collapse again. Maybe it would be better if you stayed and rested in the dorm tomorrow; we can let the headmaster and teachers know you aren’t feeling well. I’m sure they’d understand after what happened earlier...”

“S-Seriously, you guys; I’m fine!” I held my hands up, flashing them what I hoped was a reassuring smile. I think the potion Divus used on my hand gashes earlier healed the other injuries I had, because the only things that really hurt now were my lungs. “It’s just… It’s just my asthma. Promise.”

“Asthma?”

“Crappy lungs. Fun times. Anyway, bye-bye~!” A hand grabbed the top of my head and I yelped, stumbling back as I found myself in another chokehold. Damn it, Ace. “Wh-What?”

“In his arms. Now.” The ginger demanded. “Or his back. I don’t really care which.”

“But-”

“No buts!” He released me, grabbing my shoulders and pushing me towards Deuce. Another squeak escaped me. “Now hurry up. The faster we get this done the faster I can go to bed. I’m _tired.”_

I huffed, slumping over and pouting slightly as Deuce shook his head and squatted down, gesturing for me to climb onto his back.

This is so stupid. Did they already figure me out? I know I can be obvious, but I didn’t think I was that obvious to read. I begrudgingly climbed onto the blue-haired teen’s back, wrapping my arms around his neck and trying not to feel too embarrassed or ashamed for having to accept help from others. Even if I acknowledged my own weakness, it was still hard.

I just… wanted to do things on my own. I hated being so weak. I hated feeling useless.

So if the help isn’t aggressively given… chances are I won’t accept it. Because I know if I _did_ start accepting help I would end up relying too much on it. I wanted to be depended on, too. It was such a nuisance.

I rested my chin on Decue’s shoulder, biting my bottom lip in frustration, before letting out a yawn. Blinking tiredly as all the adrenaline started to drain away, I glanced at Ace and Grim, who were bickering and grinning, and then I looked up at the start-filled sky hanging above the courtyard. I’ve… never seen a sky so beautiful. It was such a deep and dark shade of blue, yet it was lit up with thousands of stars. It was unlike anything back in my world, where you had to travel out to the middle of nowhere just to get a decent glimpse of something close to this sort of view.

“Hey… you guys?”

Deuce and Ace turned their heads, humming and blinking at me in confusion. Grim, on the other hand, looked up as if he didn’t understand why my tone of voice was suddenly so soft. I smiled, closing my eyes and basking in the warmth of a new friendship..

“Thanks. You... really are great.”

They said nothing. Ace didn’t even make a comment about me being too cheesy or lame, and instead just scratched the back of his head- looking away. Deuce hid a small smile from view, chuckling lightly, and Grim shook his head at us, jumping up and climbing onto Ace’s shoulder. His good mood was only emphasized by his wagging tail. Heh. We really were such a ridiculous group.

And yet… it was so nice spending time together like this.

The path to the abandoned dorm felt shorter than it actually was, as I was finally _enjoying_ myself for once. Back home when it came to strangers or with guys, I would feel super uncomfortable around them because of all the things my dad had drilled into my brain. But it wasn’t like that this time. Not with these two. I guess between all the panic and frustration, and the stress of trying not to get kicked out, the friendship built itself up so fast there wasn’t any time to stop it.

A life-and-death situation really can mess with a person, huh?

I can’t believe I’m not even disturbed by the dorm grounds right now. The cobwebs, the bugs, the eerily gravestone-esque rocks; they didn’t bother me at all. Not even the fact that the building itself was haunted could deter my good mood. Compared to what we just went though and faced, this place felt so… safe.

_I should be scared._

Yes. Even with this warm feeling, I’m still in a place far away from home. Despite how much I was hoping for it, I feared that I might be stuck here forever. I couldn’t find anything in the library and the only person I could really count on to help me research was the headmaster, but he was a busy man, right? I might end up being here all the way up to graduation or longer.

_I want go home…_

I tightened my hold on Deuce and buried my face in his shoulder, eyes squeezing tightly shut as the emotions tried to make themselves known again. All I really needed was a hug. After everything that’s happened, that we’ve all been through, I knew it was such a simple and silly little thing, but… my sanity depended on it. I felt Deuce tense for a moment, surprised by my actions, before he slowly started to relax. He tightened his grip on my legs, almost as if to reciprocate the gesture.

And when we arrived at the entrance of the dorm… he paused. Deuce glanced at me as best as he could. “Do you need help inside, too? Or should I drop you off here?”

I didn’t speak for a moment. I really didn’t want to be left alone with my thoughts. When I did finally speak my voice was quiet, eyes half-lidded in my exhaustion. “Here’s good. Thank you.” He nodded, getting down on a knee and letting me slide off his back. I gave him as bright a smile I could muster and then stepped back, looking up at both teenagers. “I’ll… see you guys tomorrow?”

I hated how hopeful I sounded.

“Yeah.” Ace grinned, placing a hand on his hip. “Don’t get into any trouble without us, you hear?” 

“Same goes to you. Buuuut I’ll do my best.” They snickered at my words and chuckled even more when I let out a yawn, blinking rapidly as the tired tears tried to build up. I waved as they started to head down the hill towards the school, as they had to loop around the building to get to their own dorm. “Bye-bye~! See you!”

“Good night!” Deuce called, and shortly after they disappeared from view. A satisfied smile spread across my face and I sighed, shaking my head.

“Those guys are totally going to be besties.”

“Right?” Grim said, almost knocking me over when he jumped onto my shoulder. I looked at him in surprise, oddly unbothered by his presence. “I’m pretty sure they’re the type who fight to hide how much they actually care.”

Seems like it. Wait, why is Grim sniffling all of a sudden? I looked at him in concern, alarmed by his sudden shift in behavior, and watched as his eyes watered. “A-Are you okay?”

“I’m fine! I-It’s just… that… I can’t believe it’s actually happening. Finally, after all this time…” A grin lit up his face, the cat monster close to crying tears of joy. He tossed a paw into the air. “I get to be a student! I can’t wait.”

I blinked.

 _Riiight-_ this all started because he wanted to get an education here. He was determined to become the greatest mage of all time. That was why he attacked me when I first woke up and why he was so upset about becoming a janitor. Raising a hand up, I scratched behind his ears, smiling at him gently.

“I’m proud of you, Grim.” I could be nice to him this once, seeing as he wasn’t annoying me. He did help with that ink monster. In fact, it was him ditching cleaning duty that led to us breaking the chandelier, which in turn led to me accidentally getting Ace and Deuce to cooperate. Because of that the headmaster made up his mind to make us students here. As frustrating as it was, and as much as I hoped this cat didn’t do anything else annoying in the future, he did make his dream come true. “Good job.”

He laughed, sniffling again and wiping at his face with his paws. Grim looked so excited. “Tomorrow marks the start of our bright and shiny life at Night Raven College!”

“Yup! So~ let’s try not to die, ‘kay?”

I wasn’t sure if I could handle another ink monster attack. Placing the mask on my face, I carried an enthusiastic Grim into the dorm, the camera tucked to my side. The ghost trio was there all ready to greet us, singing and popping up out of nowhere to startle us. They got quite the kick out of our faces, especially mine, seeing how pale I had gotten. I almost didn’t recover from the shock.

My poor lungs...

When I told the ghosts to stop jumpscaring me as I’ll have an asthma attack they merely laughed, saying that they _should_ scare me again if that’s the case so I could die and be stuck with them forever. I promptly threatened them with Grim when they said that, and the cat monster was more than willing to blast them with fire if need be. After we made it to the bedroom Grim jumped off my shoulder and huddled into a ball on the collapsed mattress, sighing and falling.

Determined to go to bed as well, I wasted no time in kicking off my boots and removing my top robe.

They were _so_ gross. Covered in blood and dirt, and torn in several places- the robe could seriously go for a wash. I myself was in desperate need for a shower. Eughhh. Unfortunately, as I was reminded when I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth, there was no such thing. There was only an extremely large bath- obviously meant for the students who used to live in the dorm. They all must have bathed at the same time or something.

And quite frankly… it looked horrible. It was as nasty as the rest of the abandoned dorm. I would have to clean it before I could even think of getting clean myself. But… man… I’m so tired. I don’t even have the strength or willpower to go about doing that right now. Heading back to my room I yawned, collapsing onto the mattress and breathing into my mask, ignoring how heavy my chest felt. If I truly had a fever then there was a good chance my lungs were inflamed.

And sleeping in a place like this… certainly wasn’t… helping.

My eyes slid shut.

...

_“Mama! Mama, where are you!?”_

Oh. This place again. The child had removed himself from the bench and was carrying a book in his arms, running around the dark area and trying to find his mother. Thorns grabbed at me and tried to pull me back with each step, but I fought against them. I wasn’t going to let them win. I wasn’t going to let this child’s rotten mother win. I was still determined to let them know they mattered.

_“I finished my studies, so… may I please go play with my friends?”_

The child was running quite fast. Where was he even going? My eyebrows furrowed and I choked, the rose thorns piercing the inside of my throat as I tugged against the inky black vines holding me back. It took all my strength to trudge forward and fight against the restrained, moving through the inky river as such a sluggish pace. When I was finally able to get close to the child I was surprised to see that color had finally washed over their form.

From the looks of it the child appeared to be a boy. And his deep red hair led me to a tree, where I found myself crouching down to crawl through some kind of hollow passage within. But... when I came through to the other side... the boy was gone.

It was only me. I looked around in deep confusion, lost in some sort of hedge maze. Why did… everything look so much bigger than usual? Or was it that I was smaller? I looked down at myself, tilting my head and frowning when I saw the blue dress and white stockings that were decorating my form.

These clothes aren’t… mine. My lungs also felt oddly refreshed, as though the roses had been removed. My tiny hands went up to my lips, and I was surprised to find the roses weren’t there. Could I finally talk?

...No. My mouth won’t even move the way I want it to. Why?

If the flowers weren’t there… why couldn’t I talk?

_“Mama!”_

The voice caught me off guard. I whirled around, long blonde hair swishing over my shoulders. The boy! He was turning the corner at one of the pathways in the maze, just a few feet away. I had to catch up to him.

My legs moved without hesitation, stronger than they’ve ever been, body healthy and full of foreign energy. When I ran little air seemed to escape me. I felt… free. Freer than I’ve ever been. I almost felt like a little girl again.

_“Please, I don’t want to do this, Mama!”_

But… why was it so hard to catch him?

_“I’m so tired of these rules…”_

One second he was right there in reach and then he was turning the next corner, making me run in circles. Before long I could hear the singing voices of several people, and it was only when I reached the entrance to a small garden that I realized the boy had led me to them on purpose.

Because he stood there before me now, his book loose in his hand, an arm covering his face as tears streamed silently down his cheek. His voice was ever so quiet, so haunting. When he spoke I could feel my heart shattering all over again.

_“Why... do we have to paint the roses red…?”_

I wanted to answer him so badly. But when I stepped forward and made to rest a hand on the top of his head, noting that we were almost the same height, he had vanished. All that was left were the singing voices of the three humanoid cards standing near some flower trees. I turned to look at them, only to jump as red paint hurled past my face, more than a little alarmed.

 _“Painting the roses red~! We’re painting the roses red!”_ There were three cards- a trey, a deuce, and an ace- and they were all panting the white rose trees red. “ _We dare not stop or waste a drop, so let the paint be spread!”_

I didn’t even know rose trees were a thing. I thought the flowers only grew on bushes. 

_“Paint the roses red~ we’re painting the roses red!”_ The cards dipped their brushes into the paint cans, slabbing thick hunks of the liquid onto the white flowers, drowning them and damaging them beyond repair. I winced at the sight, pitying the poor things. They really deserved much better than that. They had been so beautiful, too. _“Oooh~ painting the roses red, and many a tear we shed~!”_

The trey card leaned back from the tree, holding a freshly painted rose to his face, clearly pained by what he had to do. _“Because we know…”_

 _“They’ll cease to grow~!”_ The deuce chimed in, singing in harmony with the trey.

The ace marched over, dramatically throwing his arms out as he wailed. _“In fact they’ll soon be deeaaad!”_

I watched as the first two cards started sobbing, covered in red paint from when the trey had accidentally smacked them with his brush. _“Nooo!”_ They held their arms over their faces, hunching over, but then they picked themselves back up- finishing their paint job of this specific rose tree. They grabbed their brushes and their ladder, and marched on over to the next one in line.

And together, once more, they sang. _“And yet we go ahead~ painting the roses red!”_ Once they had gotten everything situated, they started to get to work. _“We’re painting the roses red~ we’re painting the roses red!”_

I couldn’t help myself. It was almost as if I didn’t have control of my body. Though, in all honesty, I was starting to think this wasn’t my body at all. I skipped on over to the trio and parted my lips, attention focused on the trey card, but when my voice was finally able to come out… it wasn’t mine at all. It sounded much younger and higher in pitch. _“Oh, pardon me; but, Mr. Three, why must you paint them red~?”_

The cards all turned and gasped, surprised by my question. _“Ooooh!”_

The trey card leaned down from his spot on the ladder, holding the paintbrush up to the side of his face to whisper, _“Well, the fact is, miss; we planted the white roses by mistake! And~!”_

They started singing again, hurriedly painting the rest of the roses. “ _The queen she likes them red~ if she saw white instead…!”_

 _“She’d raise a fuss!”_ The ace warned.

 _“And each of us…”_ The deuce continued.

 _“Would quickly lose his head~!”_ They all finished, the trey sliding the paintbrush across his neck dramatically and getting red all over himself as if to emphasize their point.

I cringed, blue eyes wide as I shot a hand up to my own neck. My voice once again did not sound like my own, the words leaving my lips involuntarily. _“Goodness!”_

The cards kept singing. They shuddered and shook, greatly disturbed by the queen and her behavior. I can’t believe anyone would just chop off a person’s head for planting the wrong flowers. There was no need for a death sentence just because someone made a small mistake like that. _“Since this is the part we dreeead~!”_ The cards whirled around, picking up their things and heading to the next tree. _“We’re painting the roses red!”_

Jeez.

I shook my head and reached out to grab a paint can, prepared to offer my assistance, but then I froze. A tiny hand had grabbed my wrist and when I looked up to see who it was… a pair of sad grey eyes were looking back at me.

 _“That’s why.”_ The little boy said softly. _“That’s why we must paint the roses red. Mama is just like the queen; all they want is perfection. S-So… we must…”_

His shoulders started to shake, his lips curling back as he looked down.

_“We must follow the Queen of Hearts’ law.”_

No. No one should be forced to follow the rule of a tyrant.

Suddenly back in my original form, the world around us returning to black, I reached out to rest a hand against his face, kneeling down so we were closer in height. He deserved better than this. Maternal instincts acting up, I brushed away some of the tears dotting his face and choked, strangled by the flowers in my throat once more when I tried to speak. Something about this child was so eerily familiar.

With his deep red hair and storm grey eyes, he almost looked like-

Ugh, my brain. I can’t… think. Who was it?

I was unable to remember in time. The boy quickly vanished into nothing at my fingertips and the world began to fall apart, waking up. My eyes shot open and I let out a small gasp, inhaling sharply as I struggled to recover from the intensity of my dream. Grim was kneading at my arms.

“Finally!” He exclaimed, watching as I winced and pressed a hand to my forehead. “You were dead asleep!”

My fever felt like it had gone down some, though my chest continued to feel like there was a large dog sitting on it. I sent Grim a sour look, still very much tired. “Wh… What do you want? What time is it?”

“I don’t know, but someone keeps knocking. Go see who it is.”

“...Seriously?” I stared at him blankly, unimpressed. My breathing was so wonky. The dream I had seriously freaked me out. Deeply bothered by what my subconscious just threw at me, I narrowed my eyes. “Can’t you do it?”

“I don’t want to.”

And to think I was actually starting to like this bratty cat monster.

I brushed my choppy brown bangs out of my face, huffing as I stared at the bedroom door. I then glanced towards the windows, which was covered by the curtains, before I finally turned my gaze back to Grim. “You realize that… if it’s a murderer… I’m dead, right? You can’t… go to school as only _half_ a student. Th-That was… the deal.”

“Geh…” He scowled, realizing I had a point. I felt immense satisfaction in watching the cat monster pull himself up, his tail swishing irritably. “Fine, you win. Now hold still.”

“Huh-? _Whoa!”_

Grim jumped onto my shoulder, clearly determined to not do any walking himself. I sighed, deciding that it would be best to not argue at this point, and made myself stand up. I pulled my boots on and wandered out of the room, a little dazed, and had to cling to the railing as I made my way down the staircase, the world threatening to spin and make me lose balance. “You okay, human?”

“Y-Yeah.” I stammered. “F… Fine. M’fine.”

I blinked rapidly, waiting for my vision to clear before continuing to the door. Nervousness was starting to seep in, my anxiety spiking when I heard the person at the door keep knocking.

“M… Maybe it’s just the ghosts?” I suggested. They were poltergeists, after all. While they could phase through walls when they wanted, they could also grab objects and do things with them. It’s why they were so confident they could kill us before on day one of this nightmare. “We should… probably just… ignore them…”

“No way! I can’t sleep through all this knocking!”

“Ugh, fine! O-Okay. Just…” I took a deep breath, head pounding a little as the knocking kept going. Whoever was doing this was being very aggressive. I raised my voice, tentatively calling out as I took a step closer to the door. “Wh-Who’s there!?”

“It’s me, Ace!” My heart almost stopped at the familiar voice, the relief so strong. Thank gods it wasn’t a murderer. “Let me in!”

I reached out to open the door, but then I halted. Why is he here? It’s the middle of the night. Considering everything we’ve been through I didn’t think he was the type, but if he does try something then I _will_ hurl a certain cat monster at his face. I don’t care how nice he was earlier. I hesitantly reached over and opened the door, eyes growing wide when I saw what was around his neck.

Grim gasped, openly hissing as his fur stood up on end. “Th-That’s that collar!”

Oh, Ace was furious.

His red eyes were ablaze with hate and anger, and I hurriedly stepped out of the way as he stormed into the dorm. “I am _never_ going back to Heartslabyul ever again!” He shouted, whirling around to glare down at me.

I jumped, taking a step back, startled by the intensity of his expression and a little scared by how much he was shouting. I did not do well with angry people. Or yelling people. Or anyone of the sort. Honestly anyone raising their voice at me had me start panicking, but this was Ace and we had been getting along so well a few hours ago, and based on that collar and his words I don’t think his anger is actually directed towards me. He’s just venting.

“Starting today I’m joining your dorm! Got it!?”

Although that venting did leave me startled and a bit uneasy.

“Wh-Wha-uh, um, o-okay…” I looked at him and then the door, and then back at Ace with my mouth slightly agape. “I… I am so confused right now; I’m sorry. Uh, what are you wearing? Wh-Why are you joining my dorm? I mean, I won’t complain, but… _huh?_ ”

Grim swished his tail, sitting up a bit and pressing a paw against my plague mask to get my attention. “It’s that evil collar! You know, the one that redhead put on me before!” It took a second for me to figure out what and who he was talking about. Grim glared at the collar when Ace stepped closer, extremely irritated by the memory of having to wear that thing. “Ugh, what was that jerk’s name again…?”

“...You mean Riddle?” I had almost forgotten about him. I gazed up at the ginger standing before us, deeply concerned and voice just a little bit accusatory. We had literally just told each other before we separated to stay out of trouble. “Ace… what did you do?”

He folded his arms at my question. Dare I say it, the boy almost looked like he was pouting. His voice was very quiet as he mumbled his answer. “I… ate a tart.”

I stared, raising my eyebrows at the ginger and wondering if perhaps I had misheard. My sick exhausted brain could not keep up at this hour. “You… ate a tart?”

That was some kind of dessert, wasn’t it? I squinted, thinking deeply and trying to picture the treat in my mind. I’m _pretty sure_ I know what a tart looks like, but at the same time as someone who doesn’t really eat sweets there’s a good chance that I honestly have no clue and am only disillusioning myself. Wait. Ace didn’t correct me. What?

“H-Hold on.” I didn’t mishear. Realizing this, I made a face of disbelief. “You made Riddle mad… because you ate a tart?”

“Yeah!” Ace was not happy. “I was starving by the time I made it back to the dorm since we all missed dinner, so I checked the fridge and there were some tarts chilling inside. Three of them!” He held up his fingers. “Three whole tarts! They looked delicious and, I mean, there were so freaking many of them that no one was going to notice one piece missing, right? So I had one. And let me tell you, it was _delicious._ Way better than the stuff stores sell.”

Okay…

“But then Riddle snuck up on me! Apparently they were _his_ tarts and my eating a piece violated some stupid Queen of Hearts rule, and he started shouting at me saying that tart theiving was the worst crime of all! Next thing I knew, he was cutting off my head!”

Oh. Oh dear. I mean, his head is still clearly attached to the rest of his body, but- oh! My eyes widened, brain struggling to remember the conversation I had before with the redheaded dorm leader. “Th-That’s his _unique magic_ , right? I remember him telling me about that.”

Ace frowned. “What, you’ve actually talked with him?”

“Well-”

Grim cut me off, scowling. “She had lunch with him. You know, before we were supposed to have detention?”

The ginger huffed and turned his head away, clearly upset by this. “Anyway, moral of the story is that I’m freaking pissed. The end.”

I brought a hand up and ruffled my hair, not even sure where to begin with all of that. Ace took that as his chance to march over to the rest of the lounge, plopping down on one of the cleaner sofas and propping an elbow up on the armrest, chin resting in his palm, red eyes irritable. He was seriously upset. I stared for a moment, wondering what I should do and if him coming to me for help was really the best idea.

Actually… why _did_ he come here? Because it was the only place he could go outside of Heartslabyul- the very place he wanted to escape? I shook my head and followed him, wandering over and sitting down on the loveseat across the coffee table, opposite of where Ace was. Is it because he feels he can trust me? Or is it because I was the adult out of the group?

Not that I felt very adultish, but… mind over matter I suppose. I barely functioned as a human being. I leaned back in the seat, bringing a hand up and tapping my forefinger against my mask, trying to figure out the best way to calm Ace down. I also needed to think of how to best explain his own mistake without making him angrier.

He shouldn’t have eaten that tart without finding out who it belonged to. He then should have asked for permission. Anyone would be upset to find their food gone from the fridge, and from what little I knew Riddle was pretty strict as a dorm leader. The conversation I had with him made it especially clear he didn’t care for rulebreakers.

Though for him to seal Ace’s magic without a warning first is a little… messed up.

“I-I mean, you have the right to be angry,” I began, hoping I didn’t end up accidentally crossing any boundaries, “but…”

“But?” Ace challenged, narrowing his eyes. I hesitated. Grim, however, did not.

“You and Riddle are _both_ in the wrong.” The cat monster stated bluntly. The ginger sat up straight, mildly offended by his words.

“Isn’t sealing my magic for eating a tart going a bit too far!? It’s like having an arm or leg chopped off! And there were _three_ whole tarts! A little guy like him can’t eat all of those by himself!”

I don’t know about that. The redhead was the same height as me and I could eat quite a bit on my own when hungry. “You’d be surprised.” My stomach was twisting angrily at me; all this talk of food reminding me of the fact that I didn’t get to eat dinner either. I moved my hand away and rested it on my forehead, wincing a little as the pounding in my skull grew worse. “Some people… can do… a lot of things you aren’t expecting.”

“Okay, fine,” Ace relented, “but there’s gotta be a limit to how narrow minded a person can be! What he did was just way too messed up!”

“I mean, you’re not… wrong _._ ” Riddle definitely could have gone about scolding him better. Ace, on the other hand, shouldn’t have eaten a tart without permission from the one who made and/or bought it. The problem lies at both ends.

“Right!?” Ace threw his hands up in the air. “Thank you! I _knew_ you’d understand.”

“Y’know…” Grim suddenly said, looking at us with big eyes. “What if those tarts were for some kind of party? Maybe it was for someone’s birthday!”

Ace stared, disbelieving. “Birthday?”

“Who eats tarts at a birthday party?” I asked, deeply confused. “Don’t people normally eat cakes?”

“You never know.” The cat monster said, grinning. “Not everyone is the same. It could _totally_ be for a birthday party. Hehe~ my deduction skills are just too great.”

I nodded thoughtfully at that, ignoring the last part of his comment, and turned to Ace. I could feel another yawn trying to happen. “Okay~ so! Theory time. Let’s say… the tarts _were_ for some kind of party. If you ate a slice, it would make… some sense as to why he got so mad, right? If that’s the case, all you gotta do is apologize. I’m sure he’d understand.”

“She’s right.” Grim said, looking at him unsympathetically. “Grudges over food are the worst.”

Ace clicked his tongue. “I thought you were going to say he was being tyrannical or something…”

“I mean, I can _still_ say that?” I said, losing the battle with my upcoming yawn. “He d-definitely… shouldn’t have… cut off your magic. That’s going… way too far. But you shouldn’t have eaten the tart in the first place without at least asking first. So just… go and apologize, and all should be good.”

“Ack!” Grim shouted abruptly, startling everyone. His plaws flew up to his face and I cringed, bringing a hand up to my ringing ear. “I just realized; the headmaster only gave me _one_ tuna can! He promised me several! That bastard…”

Wow, um, okay. Please don’t shout in my ear.

Ace sent Grim a weird look before turning back towards me. He grimaced, clearly reluctant to do anything I suggested. “...Fine. I just- I just have to apologize, right?” He gave me a sour look, almost resembling that of a kicked puppy. “This is your idea, so you get to come with me. I won’t forgive you if you try to skip out.”

I flashed him a lazy smile, eyelids having trouble staying open. Lacing my fingers together, I held my palms outwards in his direction. “Relax~ it’ll be fine! It’s not as hard as it sounds, I promise. You have to make it sound like you mean it, though, or he won’t forgive you. Oh, that reminds me... I still have to pick up my uniform from the one teacher…”

I wanted to say his name, but the idea that I had to call him “Master Crewel” freaked me out too much and I ended up referring to him as though I had forgotten who he was. Eugh. Classes are going to be hard. I yawned again, falling sideways onto the armchair, Grim yelping and nearly tumbling off my shoulders.

“I don’t wanna do school all over again…”

“Hey, hey!” Ace got up from his spot on the couch, clapping his hands to wake me up. I jumped, eyes snapping open, and I looked up at him. He folded his arms, standing in front of me and frowning. “Before you fall asleep, mind telling me where I can bunk for the night?”

Grim scowled, halfway on my arm and halfway on my back. “You’re seriously staying the night? All the rooms except ours are a mess.”

I sat up and Grim climbed onto the arm rest. I gave another yawn. “Gonna be real, ours is _still_ kind of a mess.”

“Yeah. Clean a room for yourself.”

Ace stuck his tongue out at his words. “Blegh! I am _not_ cleaning.”

That was when his eyes lit up, the teen having an idea. I blinked when the couch’s weight suddenly shifted, a pair of arms wrapping around my shoulders. Please don’t. I tensed, growing increasingly uncomfortable when I saw how close Ace’s face was to mine.

“Heeey~ you know what you should do? You should totally let me stay with you in your room.” He grinned at me. “I’m pretty slim, so I won’t take up too much space! I won’t even hog the blankets. So, please~?”

“Uhhh, no.” I would rather _not_ go to jail. I pried his arm off of me and slid out of his grasp, staggering onto my feet with my hands held out to my sides. Spinning on my heels, I whirled around and snapped my fingers, pointing at him with a grin he could not see due to my mask. “You, dear sir, get the couch!”

“Tch.” He clicked his tongue at me again. “Fine, stingy. I’ll sleep on my own in this dusty ol’ room.”

“Glad you’re so understanding.” I grinned, bending my fingers in a goofy wave. “Good night~!”

He plopped back down onto the couch, laying on his back with a scowl. “Good night.”

Dramatic, much? I mean, I’m the same, but…

Eh, whatever. Haha. I stretched my arms out with another loud yawn, stumbling back as dizziness hit me once more. Grim bid Ace goodnight and rushed up the staircase, telling me to hurry up, and I did so. As I was walking off I noticed that Ace was still wearing his dirty uniform, which meant that he hadn’t even had time to change before Riddle snuck up on him. Poor guy. I can’t imagine it being that comfortable to sleep in.

This ceremony uniform made pretty awful pajamas, too.

“I hate that stupid dorm leader…” The ginger grumbled, turning onto his side. I frowned, staring at him from my spot on the staircase, before turning away. Everything should be okay tomorrow if Ace apologizes. Riddle seemed like the kind of person who would understand a situation if it was properly explained to him.

I sighed and wandered back to the room, curling onto the broken mattress with Grim beside me. It took about two hours passing slowly by for me to realize that after being woken up the way I was… I was not going to be able to go back asleep. My brain wouldn’t stop thinking. It was stuck on this current situation, trying to figure out the reasoning behind it all.

_Riddle… “cuts off heads”... because he doesn’t like misbehavior, right? And because Ace broke some of “law” involving the Queen of Hearts, he got his own head “cut off”._

But why? Was the dorm leader that much of a fanatic towards the story behind the statue? I don’t understand. She had cut off head after head after head, all because people disagreed with her. If they made a tiny little mistake they would be killed, not given so much as a second chance.

Why would Riddle go so far as to name his _unique magic_ after the grotesque actions she had performed? Maybe I was imagining it, but something didn’t feel right about all this. We’re missing something. I sat up and sighed, running my fingers through my bangs again and grimacing at how oily and gross my hair felt.

Yeah, no, I can’t do it. I _need_ to get that bath running.

If I have another attack in the process, so be it. It’s for a good cause.

Sneaking past Grim so as to not wake him up, I left the room and walked through the halls quietly until I found what I was looking for. I entered the bathroom, rummaging through the cabinets after turning the light on and pulling out all the cleaning supplies I could find.

 _Thanks again for the mask, bird man._ I thought. This plague mask would be keeping out any strong chemical smells. All I have to do is try to limit my movement.

Filling the bucket up with water and pouring some of the cleaning supplies in it, I grabbed a sponge and started to make my way over- only to pause and stare in dread at my objective. It really was a big bathtub. It honestly looked more like a swimming pool than a bath. Rolling my right sleeve up, I slid into the tub and started to get to work.

_“Kehehe~ someone’s up early~!”_

“Gah!” I almost kicked the bucket over in my fright. The pillsbury doughboy ghost trio floated on over, filling the room with a coldness the way that only a group of ghosts could do. “H-Hey.” I awkwardly greeted, a little worried since I didn’t have my typical fire-breathing cat monster with me for protection.

 _“What’cha up to?”_ The skinny ghost questioned, hovering next to me curiously. They… weren’t being that antagonistic towards me, were they? Huh. I’m starting to think… that they were just bored. All they probably wanted was some company. _“Cleaning?”_

“Yeah.” I glanced back at the giant bath, lungs already trying to shrivel up as I thought about all the work I was going to have to put into fixing this place up. I also had the faintest suspicion there might be some roaches hiding in that drain. If this place was as old as it seemed it surely was a possibility. “So, um… y-you guys… really are like poltergeists, right? You can touch and move things?”

The chubby ghost tilted his head at me. _“Yeah. Why?”_

...I can’t do it. I turned my head away, worrying my bottom lip as I fought against the stubbornness that was my very being. “Th-That’s… uh...”

 _“Gehehe~!”_ The largest ghost laughed at me. _“You want help, don’t ya?”_

I said nothing, pretending to ignore them as I got to work scrubbing. I could hear them snickering in the background, floating about and teasing me, making jokes about how determined I was to do things myself. Five minutes passed and they still hadn’t stopped, and I could feel the frustration forming. They weren’t making this easy.

_“All you gotta do is ask~! Kehehe!”_

I know. I know, so just leave me alone. I can’t. You guys aren’t making it so difficult. I grit my teeth, eyes stinging a little as I grew to hate myself just a bit more. It should be so simple; a couple of words spoken and then bam, the problem is getting solved a lot faster than it would on my own. But I…

My grip on the sponge tightened, and I stopped to stare at the large expansive area around me. There was so much work that needed to be done and there was no way I would get it finished in time to clean up before having to head to the school. I’m not even sure I _would_ be able to head to the school after, as I was already getting a bit nauseous from all the movement. I felt so breathy and sick, and… eugh.

I stared at the ground, at the scars on my hands, and bit my bottom lip as I looked up at the ghosts. They were grinning mischievously at me, dark eyes watching intently to see what I would do next.

I… I really don’t want to ask for their help. Especially not after all their teasing.

I should be able to do this on my own. Other people can push themselves to their limits and be fine, so why can’t I? Why can’t I be like other people and be helpful? Utterly defeated I lowered my head, blinking away the stinging in my eyes. It hurt. The pain in my chest was worsening, the sob I strangled in the back of my throat very much not helping.

I’ve acknowledged my weakness, so am I still unable to do anything about it?

“C… Can you…” Gods. Okay. Breathe. This isn’t admitting defeat. “Can you guys… h-help me clean this place… please?”

It was just accepting the fact that I needed… temporary assistance. That is all. I’m still going to be doing my part.

Hearing laughter, I looked up in alarm to see the ghosts snickering at me. “Wh-What?”

 _“I dunno,”_ The chubby ghost asked, grinning, _“can we?”_

 _“Should we?”_ The skinny one inquired.

That felt like a punch to the gut. I stared at them wide-eyed, fingers clinging so tight to the sponge they started to dig into the fabric. My eyes were starting to water. These ghosts were such jerks. “W… Will you? Please?”

They started flying in a circle around me, causing me to flinch, and the largest ghost grinned. _“Maybe.”_ I ducked down, unable to get up and escape due to how fast they were moving, and for a minute I panicked. Were they actually going to attack? What would I do if they did? I don't have any means to defend myself.

They’re ghosts. They only get hurt by physical attacks when they want to be. There’s nothing I can do.

But then… wait- where’d the bucket go!? I blinked when the ghosts rushed past, the small breeze causing my hair to move out of my eyes. Did they just-?

I whirled around, wondering if they might have taken the stuff to mess with me more, but when I looked behind me I saw that they were at the other corners of the bath. Scrubbing, washing, and even checking to see if the water faucets still worked. Several roaches actually _did_ climb out of the drain, but the skinny ghost easily squashed them all.

They were… helping me. Actually working to help clean the bath.

“O-Oh… uh, thank you.” I had thought my attempt ended in failure, but they were doing exactly as I asked. They were doing it all really quickly, too. “W-Wait, I wanna-! I wanna clean, too!” I scrambled on over, awkwardly grabbing my sponge from the bath floor and dipping it into the soapy bucket they had carried away. The ghosts laughed at me.

_“We wanna prank that cat with the water later, gehehe!”_

Of course they did. I wheezed and started to cough again, having to stop cleaning every now and then to catch my breath, but before long I found myself watching with great pleasure as the dirt and cobwebs slowly faded away. With our combined team work we were able to get the tub cleaned in no time and started running the water, filling it up and focusing on the rest of the room. Skinny ghost mopped while the chubby ghost hummed and wiped the mirrors.

“D… Do you guys have names?” I asked, after a while. “What should I… call you?”

 _“Hmm?”_ The largest ghost paused, having been airing out the robes that were in the cabinets. They were a bit dusty, but they were a lot cleaner than the uniform I was currently wearing. _“We don’t remember. We’ve been dead for so long…”_

Oh. Oh jeez. That’s rough.

“Should I come up with some names then?”

The ghost looked at me, surprised. _“You would?”_

I shrugged. “Why not?”

With their approval I ended up naming the fat ghost Larry, the chubby ghost Curly, and the skinny ghost Moe. They seemed rather happy to have names again and thanked me, testing them out and calling each other by their new names for a bit. Sometime later Curly floated over, asking what I wanted to do about the shower curtains. I froze upon hearing that.

“Sh… Shower curtains?”

_“Yeah. From the showers?”_

“There… aren’t any showers.”

He snickered at me and floated away, and I found myself following him to an area of the bathroom I hadn’t explored. Lo and behold, there was a line of shower stalls waiting to be used. Moe was in the process of cleaning them. I stood there stunned, unable to believe what I was seeing, and I leaned against the wall for support, breathing heavily.

“I… I’m a _freaking_ idiot, oh my gods.”

I failed my spot checks at least three times, apparently. My observation skills are horrible. Once I got over my initial shock, I tried to think of an answer to his question.

“Umm, wh-whatdo people do with shower curtains again?” Can those be washed? I remember my step-mother washing one of mine a while back and how the pattern got ruined. These curtains are sort of bland though, so I think it might be fine. “D-Do we have any laundry machines or something?”

Moe stopped what he was doing. _“In the basement. Most of the students go to the cleaners nowadays, so the machines might not work. Want me to go check? Kehehe~ not saying we won’t stick the raccoon dog in there sometime, but…”_

“Oh no, feel free.” The ghost laughed loudly at that. “Also I’m pretty sure he’s a cat? But please! A-And, uh, thank you… really. Sorry.”

Moe continued to laugh even as he floated through the floors, heading towards the basement as he said he would. These ghosts were pretty civil if you can look past all the jokes and teasing comments. If I wanted to survive in this place I needed to get along with my fellow residents, dead or alive, and this was a pretty decent start. After I finished cleaning the showers in Moe’s place I huffed and sat down, taking another break.

I was so freaking thirsty. There was probably a kitchen somewhere in this dorm, but… I didn’t have the strength to search.

I coughed, body starting to burn up again as the fever came back with a vengeance. Moe finally returned and told me about the machines, stating that they had been fixed by someone (probably the headmaster) and that they were all working normally. “Awesome.” I closed my eyes, sweat beading down the sides of my face. Really, when they were working with me like this the ghosts weren’t so bad.

They weren’t even… that scary. I’m just a little too paranoid for my own good.

By the time the tub had filled up completely we had already finished cleaning up three-quarters of the actual room, which was pretty impressive. I thanked the ghosts and they laughed, saying that I needed to help them prank someone sometime. When I told them I was going to bathe now, trying to be polite and asking them to leave so I could have some privacy, they joked about how they were going to spy on me.

I promptly threatened them with Grim after that.

Victory was mine~!

Once the ghosts were gone I removed the gross articles of clothing and wandered over to the showers, washing over the dirt and grime before climbing into the bath. It was _that_ kind of bathhouse, unfortunately, so the showers weren’t really meant to be… showered in. It was more to just clean yourself off so you could get in the bath, and quite frankly hot water has _never_ felt more heavenly. The fans were even running, thank god, and they helped filter some of the steam and help me breath a little better in all the heat.

I could finally do something without wearing that stupid mask.

I sunk into the bath water, muscles relaxing and tension absolving, and I spent a good five minutes just basking in the feeling of cleanliness. I kicked my legs a bit, making sure to stay near the shallow end. I didn’t know all that much about bathhouse etiquette or if this could actually count as a bathhouse, but I was the only one in here. Therefore I didn’t hesitate in washing my hair, scrubbing some old shampoo and conditioner I found into it.

They still smelled nice, and most hair products can last for several years… so I’m sure it was fine. It wasn’t as if I had a whole lot of hair I needed to wash anyway.

_I’ve never felt so cleeeaaaan~!_

I love it. I even shaved my legs in the shower earlier to make my skin extra smooth. “I feel like a human again.” I breathed, closing my eyes and leaning against the edge of the bath, chin resting on my arms. “Oh, hygiene, my sweet love; I am never taking you for granted again. Haah…”

All that hard work was worth it. 

After a while I finally removed myself from the water and dried off, grabbing one of the freshly aired out robes from the cabinets since my ceremonial uniform has clearly been through hell and back. Once I had a robe on, feeling so much more refreshed and awake, I wandered about until I found the basement. It was… especially creepy.

I ended up squashing so many spiders with my boots.

On the bright side Moe seemed to have cleaned up a bit of the area, making finding the laundry detergent and everything fairly easy. I pulled the lightswitch and the room lit up, and I tossed my uniform into the washer without hesitation. The robe itself was still upstairs in my room, but all I really cared about was the top, pants, and undergarments. I stuck them on delicate and waited, sitting against the clean washer and slowly falling asleep to the steady _swish shwoosh_ of the machine.

I awoke only when it stopped, the silence bothering my sleeping self, and that allowed me to groggily transfer everything to the dryer. Then I passed out _again_ and didn’t wake up for almost an entire hour, even after it went silent and turned off. I changed into those clothes and stuck the robe in the washer, reminding myself to get the rest of the robes later (including my ceremonial one) and I headed upstairs refreshed.

Those naps did wonders. All that was left was for me to make my way to the school and figure out which classroom Divus Crewel was hiding in.

But _maaan_ I’m so hungry. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think the ghosts have names in-game, so I gave them some haha. Wholesome friendships are wholesome, but jerks are also jerks. XD Our girl finally got some relaxation time~! No sleep, but hey. She's clean. Bwahaha! Divus is up next, ya'll! Woo! 
> 
> Mainly added the ghosts' bit here since they help out in the game's Chapter 2 ending. Figured I'd build up some development between them and El to prepare for then. Also I can not tell you how many times I rewrote that dream sequence. Lol. Anyways, thank you guys so much for commenting! I love hearing what you guys think. :3 It makes my day. I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. <3 Have a nice day (or night) wherever you are!


	9. The Rose In Your Mouth

I stumbled a little, feeling the full effects of hunger and my fever as I made my way down the dorm hill. The graveyard really wasn’t that creepy anymore, especially now that it was daytime, although the sun was _way_ too bright for my liking. I grimaced and raised a hand, squinting at the sky as I tried to in vain to block the sun’s rays. I don’t think I’ve ever been up this early since I graduated.

I normally worked closing shift at work and avoided the daylight hours as much as possible, what with how late I often stayed up, so seeing the morning sky was so strange. It really helped sink in the fact that I wasn’t exactly home.

 _It’s kinda… pretty though._ The sky. _Nothing like the stars, but the way the red and gold twist together is so…_

Beautiful.

Gods, it’s… it’s hard to believe that I’m really here. I know I am and I know that this is reality, especially after everything I was forced to go through, but somehow it just hasn’t truly sunken in yet. I came to a halt, glancing around at my surroundings and taking it all in. I brought a hand up to my forehead, brushing my bangs back and holding them in place for a moment, a small snort escaping me as the ridiculousness of my actions finally hit me.

“I just… cleaned a bathroom with a bunch of ghosts.”

I _cleaned a bathroom_ with a bunch of _ghosts._

I freaking named those ghosts.

Holy frick.

I even took a nap in a dusty old basement while a boy I just met was passed out in the lounge upstairs. We had fought a god damn _ink monster_ together yesterday. And now… I’m seriously about to go collect a uniform so I can go through high school all over again. The headmaster is even convinced that I’m some kind of beast tamer for unruly and egotistical magicians.

Then there’s that one teacher- Divus Crewel. I am _not_ ready to have any kind of conversation with him. Gods, he freaked me out so much. He was so intimidating and pretty and _frick_ was that riding crop really necessary? I’ve never been so flustered before in my life than when he kept ordering me around and calling me a “good girl”. There must be something wrong with me. Aghhhh. Just thinking about him now is making me feel weird.

“My poor sick brain can’t handle this.” I whined, rubbing at my face and yawning, cheeks slightly red. Whether it was from the fever of because I was actually blushing I wasn’t sure. I just know that I am in no way prepared to face him. “What even is my life…?”

I would love to know. I sighed and continued on my way, entering the school and wandering aimlessly through the halls. It seriously feels like I’m stuck in some kind of crazy storybook, what with all the craziness I have to put up with. Magic, monsters, crystals- I almost died! Several times! In the two days that I’ve been here!

What is up with that?

I coughed a little and leaned against a wall in the schools exterior corridor, struggling to catch my breath. My body felt like it was on fire; I was seriously burning up. Not eating only made me feel _more_ sick, though this sickness made me want to not eat at all. If I didn’t stop and breathe for a bit I was going to vomit.

 _I still have to head back to the dorm and go with Ace to apologize,_ I thought, furrowing my brows as pain contorted my expression. It was still hard to believe that Riddle would get so angry over a tart. I’m sure he has his reasons, which I’m hoping to hear when we find him, but cutting off someone’s magic was a bit too extreme. _Does he like sweets that much?_

The Queen of Hearts and her law… must be obeyed. That was all I was understanding from what I had been told. She decapitated people when they made her upset and as such Riddle was doing the same- only with magic instead of their actual heads. He must respect her a lot for some reason.

Why, though? Why respect someone so awful? So villainous?

She’d probably kill you if you planted the wrong color of flowers in the garden.

I think I actually brought that up to Ace before when he was explaining the Great Seven statues to me. The irony is almost hilarious here; he had been so excited rambling about how “cool” and “awesome” they were, and how a strong leader was better than a weak one, and yet now that a person who was mimicking the Queen of Hearts behaved strictly towards _him_ Ace wasn’t so big on that anymore.

What goes around comes around. He’ll learn eventually.

I coughed again and inhaled deeply, breath coming out in stuttered bursts. My lungs were seriously upset today. The bath felt great, but all the work I had to do in order to help the ghosts get them clean was really hard on my body. I knew it was going to be, yet I did it anyway. I wasn’t going to regret it though; I had made my decision. I needed to become more independent as an adult anyway, aside from just as a person, so it was fine.

It had… to be…

The world around me spun and I stumbled, nearly falling over if not for the paneless windows. I was able to latch an arm around them, hunching over and gasping as my legs tried to give out on me. They felt so numb. My whole body was starting to feel like one giant limp noodle due to the lack of proper oxygen flow.

Yeah. My lungs were _definitely_ inflamed.

Because why wouldn’t they be? This world was clearly out to get me if the last two days were any kind of example. Maybe it knew I wasn’t supposed to be here. Maybe it knew I was an intruder on its lands. Or maybe I’m just being paranoid and the fault is truly my own. Most likely the latter. I wheezed, glaring at the courtyard before me.

I almost hated how beautiful and serene it looked.

It was just another symbol of how far away from home I was.

“Oh my.”

I blinked, groggily lifting my head up and turning to see who had said that. A pair of apple red eyes bore into my own brown ones, very curious as they gazed upon my form. Hanging upside down was a pale face framed by strands of black-and-pink hair, and pointed ears made themselves known as a result. I was too startled to scream, too pained and breathless to shout, and in my shock my reaction ended up being rather delayed. I recoiled, almost hitting my head off the column behind me.

“Fufufu~! Easy now, young one. You do not look as though you are feeling very well.”

“Th-Th-Th-That-That’s… I… you… huh?” I flinched and coughed, bringing an arm up and burying my face in my sleeve. I looked at the stranger again, noting that he was literally dangling upside down from the air. His feet weren’t even touching the ceiling. “Wh-What…?”

“My, my…” The boy tilted his head, concerned expression slowly shifting into a surprised one. Clearly intrigued by something, he leapt down from the air and landed gracefully onto his feet. When I tried to speak, to voice my surprise, only more gibberish left my tongue. His voice was far deeper than what fitted his pretty appearance, though there was something familiar about it. I think I might have seen him at the entrance ceremony. “I must admit, I wasn’t expecting this. How interesting.”

He stepped forward and I tensed, frozen with my back to the column as he got a little too close for comfort.

If I had been feeling the way I was yesterday, I might have been a little pleased to note that I was taller than him- even if it was only by an inch. Unfortunately, as that was not the case, the way he was looking at me left me deeply disturbed and frightened instead, his eyes somehow reminding me of a person who has seen _way_ too much despite their young appearance. They were knowing and curious, and my stomach twisted grossly with the idea that if I made this person angry there might be no surviving it.

“Wh-Who…?”

The boy said nothing, smiling curiously as he raised a hand up to my face. I cringed and leaned back as best as I could considering my current position stuck to this pillar, unable to make an escape, and I watched nervously as his thumb and forefinger pinched the air near my lips- as though he were plucking something out of the air. He hummed curiously, staring at his pinched fingers, and chuckled. He glanced at me. “My name is Lilia Vanrouge.”

He finally stepped back, giving me some space, and I choked. I felt far more dizzy than I did a couple seconds ago. I wasn’t even aware I had been holding my breath until he pulled away.

“Tell me, young one,” Lilia began, unpinching his fingers and holding his hand out as though dropping something to the ground, rubbing the heel of his left foot against the floor. He looked back at me, “are you aware that there is a rose in your mouth?”

What? I am so confused. “R… Rose?”

“No?” He blinked. “Well, that’s no good at all. No wonder you are in such a sorry state. Come, come,” Lilia stepped forward, grabbing my arm and wrapping it around his shoulders, “let this old man take care of you. The infirmary is this way.”

“O-Old-!? N-No, wait, I…” I couldn’t finish. I coughed into an arm while my free hand clawed at my chest, digging into the fabric of my shirt. My lungs hurt so much; they were burning, writhing, suffocating. It almost felt like I was dying, like my heart was beating so fast that it was actually starting to slow down. All I could hear was its pounding. “D-Divus… told me… to go to h-his classroom… I have to...“

Curses. There was no way I could even think of talking to the man like this. Lilia frowned at me.

“Master Crewel? You want to go to him?”

I pressed my arm to my lips, repressing the urge to vomit. The worst part was that even if I did vomit, there wouldn’t be anything to throw up. Unable to speak, I merely nodded at the boy’s words.

“I see… but that is going to be a bit of a problem. He won’t be in the classroom for another half hour.”

Frick.

“Have you eaten yet today?”

I coughed some more, legs threatening to give out again as I shook my head.

“Then let’s head to the cafeteria. It might help to get something in your stomach. You humans are so fickle about these things.” He started walking, dragging me along with him as he held my wrist and kept an arm around my waist, helping me move. “Why, when Silver was younger and had gotten sick, he would always lose his appetite. But he would recover near immediately after I’d give him some of my special homemade soup!”

“Th-That’s… good.”

“Indeed!” The boy called Lilia chuckled. “Ah, reminiscing almost makes me miss taking care of a human child… oh! I know; maybe I should introduce you two sometime? He could do well with a friend. Although that curse of yours is a little bit concerning…”

“C… Curse?”

“The rose.” We finally arrived to our destination. There were quite a few people in the area, but he had his eyes set on one specific table. I flinched when he made me sit down, legs giving out completely now that they didn’t have to put weight on anything. Lilia sat down beside me, pressing his fingers lightly to his collarbone and it dragging down to his chest- splaying his hand out as he spoke as if to emphasis a point. “It is covered in blood… and trailing deep into your lungs, eating away at you.”

There was no way that was possible. Of all the insanity I was willing to accept, this wasn’t part of it.

So... why wasn’t I trying to refute his claims? Why was I sitting there silently and listening to him talk? Was I simply that tired? Too exhausted from all the crazy that has occurred since my arrival to this place?

“It’s a very ancient spell,” The boy continued, frowning deeply, “and a variation of many. This particular one is a rather nasty sort.”

“Oh, h-how… lovely.” Lilia chuckled at that.

“I must ask; who did you anger, young one?”

That was one heck of a question. “C-Con… Considering… I’ve only been… in this world… for two days… I’m not sure h-how to answer.” More coughing. I hunched over, gripping at the table as I hacked into my sleeve. This nausea was awful. “S… Sorry.”

Lilia frowned, rubbing a hand against my shoulderblades gently as if to try and soothe the pain. He was being very touchy feely, but at the moment I didn’t really care. All I was focused on was the pain. Not even the “curse” nonsense was really getting to me. “It is not me whom you should be apologizing to. Whoever did this to you… no. Never mind that. We must get you food. We can continue our little chat after. Is it alright if I get a plate together for you?”

My first instinct was to sit up and do it myself, but I didn’t get very far. My forehead hit the table as I collapsed, and with words refusing to leave my lips I begrudgingly held my right thumb up, giving Lilia a silent answer. It was time to admit defeat. There was no way I could do anything in this awful condition. I pushed myself too far yesterday and only made it worse this morning.

 _Ugh._ The effects of the bath felt great while they lasted, but now my body couldn’t decide if it was hot or cold or how badly it wanted to make the world spin.

I didn’t even notice when Lilia walked off and reappeared. “Here we are! I only really know what Silver likes, so I grabbed some chicken marsala soup and fish. This college is quite wonderful with its buffet.”

Wait… this is _actually_ a college? I thought because Ace and Deuce were teenagers…

No. It’s gotta be a high school. There’s no way those two dorks are genius prodigies who graduated and went to college early. Right? _Right?_ Oooh, my poor head. It hurts. I don’t know anything. This world is too confusing.

I forced myself to sit up, Lilia sliding the tray of food in front of me. He then sat down, watching as I picked up the spoon and stirred the soup half-heartedly. I really needed to eat and I was incredible hungry, yet the thought of trying to digest anything made the disgusting acid bubble up the back of my throat.

_Just… take a bite. One bite. It should be fine._

Wait, are there carrots in this soup? Mushrooms, too, by the looks of it.

Well, mushrooms were fine, I suppose. I already feel like I’m going to throw up anyway, so even if there are carrots I might as well try eating those too. Lilia was quiet as I took a small bite, chewing slowly with the back of my hand pressed to my lips. He blinked, tilting his head, and stared. “Those scars… ah. I figured as much; you are the young one who was attacked by that monster, correct?”

“Y-Yeah.” I swallowed. Eugh. Seriously gross. The soup broth was soothing my throat, allowing me to finally get my voice working properly again. I really hoped breakfast here didn’t cost anything, because my conscious wouldn’t be able to withstand that guilt. “Thanks for… the help. Um. I-I didn’t tell you my name, did I?”

He chuckled, leaning forward and propping his chin up with his palm. “Indeed you did not. I do not blame you for it, if that is what you are wondering. I know how frail you humans can be.”

Mmm, yeah, no, I don’t like him saying that. He probably isn’t wrong at all, but it’s… weird. I almost feel threatened by those red eyes of his when he says something like that. “R… Right. Well, uh, I’m… Eleanora.”

“Quince?” My eyes went wide and he laughed. “My apologies; I merely wanted to tease you. The truth is, I already knew your name. The headmaster was yelling it at the ceremony after you were rejected by the mirror. Do you not remember? It was quite the spectacle, having a magicless girl arrive here at the academy. You’re quite infamous now, though not many truly know what you look like.”

“O-Oh, joy.” I awkwardly took another bite of the soup. The fish on the tray next to it had eyeballs, leaving me quite unnerved. If I didn’t know better I would have thought it was judging me. “Good… to know.”

“Ah, yes, I almost forgot. You mentioned you were from another world? What did you mean by that?”

Crap. Well, Grim mentioned it to Riddle before and it isn’t as though the headmaster gave me explicit orders not to tell anyone, so it should be fine.

I drank some of the broth, some of the nausea fading away despite my previous belief that it wouldn’t. I was so _hungry_. My stomach growled and churned, and I tried to pace myself, but it was hard. I took a drink of the water that was on the tray. “Y-Yeah. It’s… um, it’s weird. When the mirror grabbed me it actually straight-up kidnapped me, and now I’m stuck living in the abandoned dorm on campus with the monster that attacked me.”

Man, this food was super necessary. My legs were still jello and some lightheadedness remained, but I no longer felt like throwing up. I was also a bit more awake. I took a deep breath, coughing a little into my arm again, before waving my hands around as I spoke, chatting- as the one thing I _loved_ to do more than anything was talk, breathless or not.

“First I was a janitor, but the monster screwed that up right quick ‘cause he picked a fight with a student, and then together they destroyed a statue, right? So the student was supposed to… he-help me clean some windows as detention, b-but then… he tried to skip out. When I was looking for him _another_ student showed up and they helped me look for him, but then the _monster_ tried to skip out. A-And then… and then in trying to catch them they destroyed a chandelier. We all nearly got expelled and kicked out, and to prevent that we had to go to some abandoned mines to find a magic stone crystal thingy to repair the chandelier. There we fought a giant… ink creature in the process, and now the headmaster made a half-student with the monster who attacked me.”

Lilia blinked. “Oh my.”

“A-And I haven’t eaten since lunch yesterday, so this tastes amazing- _thank you so much-_ and my lungs really… freaking hate me… and now you’re saying I have a curse?”

“You’ve been through quite an ordeal.” He pressed his fingers to his cheek, frowning deeply. “Yet… somehow I feel it is only the beginning? You seem like the type who attracts trouble, even if you yourself tries to hide from it. Perhaps the curse is validation of that.”

“B-But… what… what _is_ the curse?” I asked, not too entirely sure if I should be fearful or not. I’ve been through so much my mind was sort of starting to numb itself. Or maybe I was just too tired. It was probably both. I still wasn’t entirely sold on this craziness. “What did you mean it was… eating away at me?”

“I can not say for certain.” He informed. Lilia brought a hand forward, surprising me when he rested it on my own. His red eyes bore into mine, intense and all-knowing. “But fret not, young one. All curses can be broken.”

Okay, that’s good to know; if the curse is a real thing at all. “...But how do I break _this_ one?”

“Well,” He pulled back and leaned against the back of his seat, folding his arms over his chest with a sly smile, “there are several ways. We could try overriding it with another curse? There is a good chance that won’t work, however, as the brand of curse you have is commonly known to be activated only by subconscious. Have you had any strange dreams lately? Memory loss, perhaps? If we can find the one who did this to you, there may be a possibility of persuading them to remove it...”

“Why would they have cursed me in the first place, though?” I asked in confusion, worrying my bottom lip. The way he phrased it bothered me greatly. “I don’t even know of anyone here who could cast a powerful curse. A-And, I mean, I think I’ve had strange dreams, but I don’t really remember them, and… I’m pretty sure there are some things I’m forgetting. Maybe.”

Like those statues from before- of the Great Seven.

“Sometimes it… feels like I know things, but when I try to remember _how_ or _why_ I know them I get this splitting headache a-and my breathing gets worse, and… and…”

I couldn’t finish. I wasn’t even sure why I was telling all of this to a person I just met. Personal problems were something I generally kept myself.

“That is the curse.” Lilia said, nodding solemnly at my words. “It steals away memories belonging to the victims and forces them into unwanted dreams. If you try to reclaim those memories your body will start to wear away, and if those memories are linked to others… you could find yourself wandering into places best left untread. If you wish to survive you should stay away. Don’t chase the dreams. Leave the forgotten memories forgotten. It is the best and safest course of action a human such as yourself can take.”

This is all so ridiculous sounding.

And yet I now found myself completely convinced. This boy spoke seriously, smiles and chuckles all gone, his expression darkening the more he explained about what was tormenting me. It was illogical, it was terrifying, and yet I somehow knew it all to be true. It just _felt_ true.

“Sometimes memories _are_ best forgotten. They might have even been unpleasant ones. And chasing them… chasing those dreams… will only tear you to pieces in the end. Which brings this old man back to the beginning- the thing that had caught my attention instantly upon seeing you.”

He raised a gloved finger, pointing at me.

“The rose in your mouth.”

I blinked, looking down and bringing my fingers up to my lips. I didn’t feel anything there? But deep in my bones, settling in my heart, was an uneasiness I could not explain. A fear unlike any other. An image bloomed in my mind; of thorns pricking skin, ripping through clothes and through flesh. An image of beautiful flowers floating along an inky black river, with bright white roses painted red. Choking me. Strangling me.

Dragging me back with each step I tried to take.

“Yes… you can sense it, can’t you?”

Lilia Vanrouge stood, looming almost ominously over the table. He pressed his fingers to his chest delicately.

“That rose _is_ the curse. If you are not careful it could bring about the end of your days. Such a lovely flower, yet its beauty comes with a price. Whoever did this to you did this with a grudge; they wanted you to suffer. It starts small, hardly noticeable at all, but whatever happens to your subconscious self is _certain_ to effect your waking self as well. As such you must take great care not to delve too far. Understand, young one?”

Talk about an information dump. My sick brain was reeling from all this; I wasn’t even sure if I understood correctly.

“...So you’re saying… that if I go too far chasing the memories I’ll be… killed?”

I felt a chill wash over my body as I said those words, his warning finally sinking in. I had just gotten to this place; why would someone want to hurt me? Did I do something to someone without realizing? I rubbed my fingers against my neck, a cold seeping deep into my bones. I wasn’t even aware I had been chasing dreams or memories, or anything of the sort. Did I even have control of myself in my dreams?

What if I act without realizing? What if… I get myself killed by accident? I don’t want to die.

Lilia stared intently for a moment, frowning, before a light smile played across his face. He reached over, startling me when he suddenly patted my head. “There, there~! It’ll all be alright, young one. Do not fret. I’m certain you’ll find a way to break the curse and, if not, then simply remain still. Do not follow those dreams, no matter how they may taunt you. Now, eat up! Master Crewel is sure to be in the classroom by now and he is hardly a patient man.”

Oh frick.

I did not argue. The strange boy watched in amusement as I lifted the bowl up, drinking from it and hurriedly eating the food. Lilia chuckled when I poked the dead fish nervously, uncertain as to how to go about eating it. It tasted fine when I finally figured it out, though I avoided the eyeballs. That dead fish was totally judging me.

With the meal effectively eaten and the nausea temporarily dulled, I put the tray up and Lilia started to guide me through the school to the classroom Divus Crewel resided in. I was still mulling over everything I was told, resisting the urge to to feel for a literal rose in my mouth. Only bad things have been happening to me here, I swear. I… I don’t… I just…

Is it so hard to have a _good_ day? To have something nice actually happen?

To just… not be scared for five minutes?

“Hey, Lilia?”

“Hm? Yes, young one?”

“...Thanks.”

He stared at me. Then he started chuckling. “But of course.”

“Also, I have a question!” I looked at him, furrowing my brows. “S-Sorry if this is… rude, but… if you’re not human, what are you?”

Lilia raised an eyebrow, amused by the question. “What, indeed. I suppose for now… you may refer to me as a faerie.”

“A… faerie?” I really hoped that wasn’t what I thought it was. “Like… a fae?”

“Yes. You’ve heard of us?”

“Uh… myths.” Oh frick. Oh gods. Holy crap. N-No, no; it’s fine. I told him my name, I didn’t give it to him. Big difference. He didn’t ask for it either. I scratched the back of my head, awkward. “Um, i-is that why you keep referring to yourself as an “old man”? Because you’re secretly, like, a couple hundred of years old?”

His eyelashes fluttered coyly and he grinned, bringing a hand up to his chin. “Fufufu~ aren’t you a sweet little human, thinking me so young.”

I looked at him in alarm. “You’re not!?”

Lilia laughed. “Let us say I am much older than you think.”

“So… like… several thousands of years old?”

Why is he in a high school. Why. Bird man, explain. The boy- er, man’s red eyes twinkled mischievously as he looked up at me, entertained by my dumbfounded reaction. For someone so ancient he looked like he could be a freshman. He was super pretty.

I cleared my throat. “W-Well, uh, I mean, uh… heyyyy!” I clicked my tongue and snapped my fingers, pointing at him awkwardly as I tried to figure a way out of this situation. “You’re lookin’ pretty good, all things considered!”

“Aha! Truly a charmer. You’re going to make this old man blush.”

“I mean, I could _try_ to make you blush?” Was this weird? This was definitely weird. I don’t know what’s happening right now. “I know several super cheesy pick-up lines. Bad jokes are more my thing though.”

“I’ll have to take you up on that offer sometime; they might just make my day.” Lilia was deeply amused. He slowed down his pace until he came to a halt, gesturing with a hand to the nearest door. “Unfortunately, we have arrived at our destination. Shall I wait for you?”

“O-Oh. Uh, okay.” Wait. I folded my arms across my chest as I resisted the urge to fiddle with my sleeves, extremely flustered and awkward for some reason. “I-I mean, if you want to. I’m just picking up a uniform, so I don’t… know how long I’ll be. Weren’t you doing something before you found me?”

“I was just looking for someone.” He informed, smiling. Lilia chuckled again. “Silver must have gotten embarrassed that I wanted to walk him to class and ran away. He probably fell asleep in the courtyard. He’s a capable young man, so I’m not too worried.”

I squinted, looking at the man suspiciously. “Are… no. Wait. Actually, yeah; are you like his dad?” 

“I raised him, yes.” His smile has never been wider. He gave my shoulder a light push. “Now go- do not keep Master Crewel waiting.”

Oh my gods. I totally just made a fae friend that is definitely going to school to keep an eye on his son. Holy frick. Um. That is beautiful? I can’t put into words how amazing that is? His human son? That he probably definitely adopted? Actually, didn’t stories have it where families would put their first born in the forest to swap it out with a fae baby the next morning? That might be what happened here.

But anyway! I knocked on the door and opened it when I heard a familiar voice call out, and I awkwardly close the door after entering. Swallowing down the lump in my throat, I walked until I was standing in the middle of the room, a bit too intimidated to approach any farther. Divus was at his desk, sketchpad in hand, humming thoughtfully to himself as he flipped through what was undoubtedly several drawings.

_This man can draw. Dear gods, let this new curse end me now._

He was seriously attractive. I hate this. I want to run back to my dust old dorm and hide in the basement again. Boldly stepping forward, curiosity being my main driving force, I stood in front of the desk- trying to get a glimpse of his artwork. His grey eyes glanced up at me and I recoiled, hands curling close to my chest instinctively as I found myself intimidated. “M… Morning.”

“Good morning.” He greeted, slowly standing up from his seat. He was stupidly tall. “Come here, little puppy. I want you to look at something. “

“O-Okay?” I moved closer to the desk, watching as he held the sketchpad out for me to see. Oooh, I could actually look at the drawings? Heck yes. “Whoa. This looks amazing- you even added in the little details! The buttons and the hemming and the… the _everything_. Those ruffles are amazing! I can draw, but not like this.”

Divus Crewel smirked at that. “I am very good at what I do, and looking good while I do it. You should be so, too. Therefore I want you to look through these designs for me, little puppy, and tell me which ones you like best and which ones you would actually wear on a day-to-day basis. I will give you your new uniform based on that.”

I looked up at him with wide eyes. “W-Wait, really?” He fixed me with a look and I tensed, hurriedly looking down at the drawings again. “Y-Yes, sir.”

“Yes, _Master_ Crewel.”

Nope. I can’t do it. “Yes, M... “ I hate this. I can’t. It feels so weird and wrong, and… uncomfortable. I blinked a couple of times, worrying my bottom lip as I struggled to get the words out. I seriously can’t bring myself to say it. It’s too embarrassing. It shouldn’t be, considering Lilia called him that, but for me it was. “M…”   
  


“Master. Crewel.” I flinched when he grabbed the riding crop off of his desk, pressing it under my chin and forcing me to look up. He was wearing that awful smirk again. “Come now, little puppy. It isn’t that hard. All the students call me that.”

It feels weird and you doing this just makes it weirder! Stop it.

I choked a little, feeling the riding crop press a bit more into my jaw. “Mast…” Just spit it out. Come on, girl. It’s not as gross as your brain is trying to make it out to be. Oooh, I want to crawl into a hole and die. I said I didn’t want to earlier, but I really want to right now. My voice squeaked a little when I finally managed to get the words out. “M-Master Crewel…”

“Good girl.”

_Damn it._

“Now look at the designs and tell me what you think.”

This cursed man was making me so flustered that the fever was trying to make me dizzy again. My lungs were not happy with this situation either, my heart racing a bit too fast. Eyebrows furrowing, I blinked away the pain in my expression and flipped through the pages, admiring each and every one of them for their incredible detailing and design, and the sheer amount of _effort_ he must have put into drawing them. He even drew hands.

This tall, intimidating, ungodly beautiful man with a voice like melted chocolate drew _hands_ like it was nothing. Forget the monsters and the stress and the curse; this person is what’s going to be the end of me.

After several long and suffocating minutes of pondering, I told him my thoughts and pointed out the ones I was most likely to actually wear. It was really hard trying not to cough. The dizziness was hitting me strong again. Divus hummed thoughtfully, nodding at my words, before setting the sketchpad down on the desk. “Very well. We should get to work then.”

“H-Hah?” He gave no explanation before he clapped his hands, a bright light momentarily blinding me. When my eyes opened I nearly shouted, alarmed to find my ceremonial clothes were gone.

Instead they were replaced with a black long-sleeve dress. The cuffs on the sleeves caused the fabric to poof out slightly, while the cuff itself was so long it stretched and covered the scars on my hands. The circle skirt itself went to mid-thigh, and overtop the dress itself was a white crop-top button-up. Tied around the collar was a black-and-white striped bow, and replacing my previous ceremonial boots were a pair that matched the rest of the outfit in color.

Divus Crewel looked pleased with himself, walking in a circle and tapping the riding crop against his palm. “I must say, I’ve truly outdone myself with this. Simple yet elegant. Those foolish mutts won’t know what hit them. Heh. Of course, if they do try anything they’ll find a suitable _punishment_ coming their way. Isn’t that right, little puppy?” I blinked, choking on my words as the riding crop found its place under my chin again, forcing me to look up at him.

“I-uh-th-that’s, um… y-yes.”

He chuckled. “From rags to riches as they say, though I won’t be expecting anything but the best from you. And before you leave, I have one more thing to give you.”

“Y… You do?” I’m still processing what just happened. Where did my original clothes go? What? This magic is confusing. I watched as he reached into his pocket, pulling out another small vial. “Is that another potion thing?”

“Yes. It’s to help with infection and inflammation. The headmaster was so very _kind_ as to tell me what sort of illness infected you, and seeing you now it was clear my hunch my correct. You are sick. More so than just with your asthma. Normally we would go through proper procedures, but you are a special case as you do not have an identity in this world, and we can’t have our newest dear little student dying, can we?”

“Not dying w-would… be nice.” Ah, yup, there’s the cough. I was doing so well repressing it, too. Lame. The teacher handed me the bottle and I grimaced, staring at it, finding the liquid color very suspicious, before deciding that even if it was poison it would end this nightmare anyway. “Geh- b… bitter.”

I was not expecting that. I had thought it would be more sour. “As most medicine is.” Divus said. I made a strange face as I felt the liquid enter my system, cool and somehow burning all the same. The weight on my chest seemed to lessen a bit. O-Oh… Oooh, that’s nice. I can actually breathe. “Well?”

“It’s-”

A hand flew up to my chest, heart beating a bit _too_ fast as a new sort of dizziness suddenly washed over me. Divus frowned, eyebrows raising in surprise as I started to hyperventilate, my lungs struggling to recover from the sudden shock of oxygen pooling into them. I was shaking badly. I was starting to think that the medicinal potion did more than it was original intended, because holy _frick_ there’s so much air. “Puppy?”

I was not equipped to handle this much air at once. What was going on? Were my lungs just that inflamed or-? The man quickly held an arm out and caught me as my legs gave out, alarm clear in those grey eyes of his.

“T-Too much-!” I choked, gasping, clinging to to him as if my very life depended on it. “T… Too much… air!”

“Too much air…?” He looked genuinely confused, as though he could not fathom what might have went wrong. The arm around me held tighter and Divus set the riding crop down, placing a gloved hand over the lower half of my face. I choked, weakly bringing a hand up to try and claw it off, the man cutting off any airflow. “Perhaps if we do this…? Easy now, little puppy! Stay! Stay!”

Lightheaded and weak I was forced to stop struggling, spots starting to dance in my vision as tears stung my eyes.

“I am going to release you. When I do… I want you to try holding your breath. Understand?”

A weak nod.

Divus removed his hand. I sputtered, leaning forward and coughing, struggling and failing to hold my breath for more than three seconds at a time. Through this I was somehow able to get a better grasp on the huge surge of oxygen entering my lungs and I calmed down, the dizziness gradually passing.

“Truly, what was that mirror thinking…?” I heard the man murmur. “I brewed it perfectly, so to think the potion would have _this_ much effect on your body; is it because you are from a world without magic?”

Whatever the case, it left me shaken. I was still a little overwhelmed. Also I was way too close to this person and I need to _back up_. Just a great big _nope_ , no, not happening, run away! I probably spent too much time here already. Ace and Grim might have woken up by now. Here’s to hoping not, because I really don’t want to go on a wild goose chase.

Although, I’m feeling a lot better now than what I was so~ I might be able to survive one if necessary. Pressing my fingertips together, still a bit breathy, I flashed Divus a smile. I was awkward and uncomfortable, but also grateful for all the help. He was seriously intimidating. It was hard believing he was actually a teacher here. He was unlike any other teacher I’ve seen. “Th-Thank you for… th-the uniform a-and… the potion.”

It’s been one whirlwind after another in this place. I can hardly keep up.

“I, uh… l-look forward to… having you as a teacher?” What does one say in this situation? I do not know. Oh gods, Lilia is still waiting outside the door, isn’t he? I should have just told him to do his own thing. Frick, I’m a terrible person.

“Yes.” Divus brought a hand to his chin, narrowing his eyes. He seemed greatly bothered by what just happened with the potion. “Do take care, little puppy. If you’ll excuse me, I must go report this incident to Dire. I’ll see you in class.”

And just like that he vanished, reminding all to much of how the headmaster does that. I shook my head incredulously.

Monsters, curses, magic, intimidating teachers that demand they be called master, and super effective potions... I give up! There’s nothing more for me to be surprised about anymore, right!? Right? This world is like… some kind of shadow realm or upside down world, or something. But… really…

What did that potion do to me?

I placed a hand on my chest, frowning as I looked down at myself.

This sensation…

It was abnormal for me. Is this… how normal people breathe? What is it like outside, if that is the case? I-I want to find out. How is this even- _magic._ Right. Divus did say something about how this wasn’t supposed to be the outcome. Was my body more susceptible to magic here because it was unused to it? What would happen if it _did_ become used to it? What about the curse Lilia says I have?

Oh frick-

_“Lilia!”_

I rushed to the door, moving faster than usual as to steady the influx of oxygen. The fae looked mildly surprised to see me slam the door open, staring at him with big eyes.

“Sorry! I-I’m... so sorry! I didn’t mean to m-make you wait so long!”

His red eyes brightened and he laughed. Thank goodness; he isn’t upset. “Do not worry! I could hear everything through the door. Are you feeling alright?”

“Y-Yeah, I…” I furrowed my brows, inhaling deeply and holding my breath for a few seconds. Exhaling, I flashed him a small smile. “I think… so. A lot better than what I was.”

“Fufu~ you really are quite the target for trouble, aren’t you? It’s good that the potion worked so well.” It was really weird when he stepped forward, placing a hand on my head and ruffling my hair. Especially since he was an inch shorter than me. I wonder if this is how it felt to my old friends when I tried to pat them on the head back in school. They were all way taller than me. “And you look simply _adorable_ in that uniform.”

“O-Oh, uh, thank you.” I blinked. He was still ruffling my hair. “A-Are you having fun?”

“Yes.”

“...Cool.”

Lilia grinned, tilting his head at me. “You do not mind having your hair ruffled?”

That was a question I didn’t get often. “I like it, actually. Head pats, too. I dunno, it just feels nice. What about you?”

He pulled away, crossing his arms over his chest. Lilia thought about it. “I am not certain. I do not often get patted.”

“Oh?” I couldn’t help the grin spreading across my face. I placed my hands on my waist, beaming. “Because you’re an “old” man?”

Lilia laughed. “What happened to that sweet persona from before?”

“Hey, I never... said I was sweet. You came up... with that conclusion... on your own. A-And you, dear sir,” I raised a hand, eyes twinkling mischievously, “sound like you are in great need of some head pats.”

“Is that right?”

“Yup.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo, here's to hoping I wrote Lilia in character, haha. I can't find much about him, but I really wanted him to show up in the first half of this chapter so I put him in anyway. Also, Divus kinda writes himself. XD 
> 
> Don't @ me. This is a Malleus and Leona, fanfic, I swear. Or at least it's supposed to be. El's infatuation is probably just gonna be a running gag when the friends find out, haha. Divus is super amused. He KNOWS he's hot stuff. Also, Lilia friendship time~! Bored immortals are bored immortals, but dads are also dads. XD 
> 
> And like, I know I wrote it jokingly in the story, but is Night Raven an actual college???? Because "College" is in the name, but Deuce and Ace and Jack are all 16??? But Leona is a 20 year old third year while Ruggie is 17 and second year??? Although Leona probs could have been held back a year because he skipped too many classes. I dunno. I should really stop writing when it's 4:24 am. I need sleep. 
> 
> What is sleep though? I don't know her. 
> 
> What do you guys think about the curse and the roses, and stuff??? Was kinda inspired by "Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell" not gonna lie. I watched that series forever back, but I always really liked the whole "rose in your mouth" thing. The scene with Lilia was heavily inspired by it. Which is ironic, since he's a fae. Haha. Oh, and this is random, but I'm gonna try and post another drawing for the story up on Tumblr soon- so that'll be fun. :3


	10. Painting the Roses Red

My day got a little better after the hair ruffling competition I had with Lilia.

I wasn’t exactly planning on befriending a super ancient being today, nonetheless a freaking _faerie_ of all things, but hey- I’m not going to complain. Granted, the chat about a curse being placed on me was super unnerving, but there was no point in worrying about it right now. Chances are I’m going to get caught up in something insane later anyway, so I’m just going to focus on getting Ace to apologize to Riddle.

Man, that’s going to be one heck of a conversation…

I stretched my arms out, yawning loudly. I could seriously go for a nap. I rubbed my face, still a little disoriented from how clear my breathing was at the moment. My asthma felt almost nonexistent at this point, though… if there really _was_ a rose in my mouth… I had a feeling my lungs were gonna start acting up again soon. What should I do…? I highly doubt knowing that I have a curse is going to make controlling myself in dreams any easier.

Knowledge is power, but it can also be a hindrance. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.

I honestly think I might have preferred not being told about it. Now I’m concerned over whether or not it’s an actual thing happening to me, why it was happening, and who could have caused it. _Ughh._ I dragged my fingers down my cheeks, blinking as I looked up at the sky, currently walking up the hill to my dorm. I really needed to think of something to call this place.

Every dorm has a fancy name, right? I live in an abandoned dorm… so... wait! How did Grim describe it before? I think he asked how “ramshackled” the headmaster let the dorm get...

If that’s the case, then maybe… Ramshackle Dorm? Yeah. Yeaaaah, I like that. Kind of edgy.

This place is called Night Raven College, after all, and we are in Twisted Wonderland.

Ramshackle Dorm it is. I gave another yawn and blinked, surprised to look up and see someone standing in the doorway. Deuce. It sounded like he was arguing with Ace, their voices a bit panicked. As I approached it became easier to make out what was being said, Ace deeply frustrated. “I can’t find her anywhere! Grim, did you even bother asking the ghosts!?”

“They threw me in the bath when I tried!”

“Bath?”

“Yeah! Those jerks cleaned the place up and filled the tub full of water. My fur is all gross because of them now!”

Deuce sighed heavily, bringing a hand up to his face. “This is troubling. Where could Miss Quince have gone?”

Neither of them seemed to have a noticed me. A bit of mischievousness still running strong from my time spent with Lilia, I tip-toed quietly towards them. Once behind Deuce, I laced my hands behind my back and leaned down, grinning up at the teen. “You can call me by my first name, you know. I don’t mind.”

Their reactions were _priceless._ The boys straight-up screamed when I spoke. Having not been expecting me, they all whirled around, staring down with alarm on their faces. I broke out into laughter, giggle snorting and failing to muffle my snickers with my hands. “Pffft~! Bwahahaha! Y-You guys- your faces- _oh my gosh_ \- that was beautiful! Ahaha!”

“Y-Y-You-!” Deuce stammered, expression shifting from anger to relief to exasperation. “You shouldn’t sneak up on people like that!”

I waved a hand, still snickering. “S-Sorry, sorry! But seriously, you don’t… you don’t have to call me “Miss Quince” anymore. You can just call me Eleanora or… some variation of that. Ace does. But _phew_. My gosh.” I sniffled, wiping at my eyes when I felt them water. “That was perfection. A-Anyway, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at your dorm?”

“Well, I was…” His voice trailed off, blue-green eyes widening in surprise. “I-Is that… your new uniform?”

“Mmhm!” I beamed and held my arms out, standing up straight and looking down at myself. Ace stood in the doorway with Grim on his shoulder, the two looking just as stunned as Deuce. Smiling a little, more than happy to be wearing clean clothes, I did a little spin- becoming even more amused when the skirt twirled along with me. I lightly kicked my right foot as I tried to show off the new boots. “It’s been a crazy morning so I haven’t been able to look in a mirror yet, but it’s cute- right? And look! Did you see earlier!?”

I did another spin, giggling at how swishy the dress was. I felt like such a little kid, the sleep depravation kicking in hard and make me behave more childish than normal. I held my arms out to the side, standing on my toes and stumbling a little, laughing.

“It twirls!”

...Wait. How come they aren’t saying anything?

I stopped, waving my arms to regain my balance, and then turned to face them. I was starting to feel a little breathy from all the movement, but not too terribly bad. That potion did a miracle, but... _no._ I’m not going to think about it. I should just be careful not to push my lungs. So I say, anyhow, but it’s not like I’m actually going to be able to restrain myself. I’m too stubborn. My eyebrows furrowed and I tilted my head, seeing the way Ace and Deuce were just… gaping at me.

“A-Are you guys okay?” I started to feel uncomfortable. Looking down at myself again, I worried my bottom lip. “Does it _not_ look cute? I mean, I know it’s really weird that I’m wearing a school uniform, but the headmaster isn’t really giving me much of a choice a-and Divus is really intimidating, but I thought the dress was adorable and-”

Suddenly, Ace started laughing.

I shut up instantly, feeling even more embarrassed about having to wear a school uniform. I lowered my hands- grabbing at my skirt and clutching the fabric nervously. I felt a little confident earlier that it looked fine, what with the person who gave it to me being such a fashionista and because of the compliment I had been given from Lilia. But I guess it… wasn’t?

Wearing a school uniform as an adult really was a bit strange. “S-Sorry...”

Ace laughed harder. He was doubled over now, a hand on his stomach. Grim and Deuce were flashing him alarmed looks, and the blue-haired teen frowned. Deuce folded his arms over his chest, glaring at Ace. “Hey, stop that! You’re making her feel bad.”

The ginger snorted and waved him off, stepping past his classmate. Grim blinked and swished his tail, confused, and I moved back a little when I saw Ace start marching over. I flinched when his hand rose up in the air, but the next thing I knew he was fervently ruffling my hair. I yelped, trying to duck down and get away, but he hurriedly wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

“O-Ow, ow, Ace; your collar! Your collar!”

He was only about five inches taller than me, so the collar Riddle put on him kept bumping into my forehead. He was being very aggressive with the treatment of my poor hair- the complete opposite of Lilia, who had been tousling it as though I were some kind of small child. Although, in all fairness, I probably was seen as one to him since he was an ancient faerie.

Gods, I still can’t believe that happened earlier. A rose in my mouth…?

Distracted by the continuous bumping of the collar into my skull, I forgot what I was just thinking about and cried out, headache only getting worse. Ace _finally_ released me and I staggered back, hands moving to my poor abused forehead. “Wh-What was that for!?”

His scrunched his nose up at me before folding his arms over his chest. “It’s less weird now.”

“Less weird!?”

Grim cackled. “Because you’re a human disaster!”

“I mean, I won’t say you’re wrong, ‘cause you’re not, but excuse you? _Rude.”_ I placed my hands on my waist, giving the two a look. “I can look nice when I want to!”

Ace shrugged. “Meh. It looks better this way.”

I sputtered. “S-Seriously!?”

Deuce chuckled. He walked up, smiling warmly at me. “It’s more “you” is what he’s trying to say, I think.” I huffed and puffed out my cheeks, making a face as I crossed my arms. This was not at all what I was expecting from them, though I wasn’t really sure I was expecting much in the first place. To my confusion the blue-haired teen looked a little red in the face. “And I… I must agree with him there. It suits you more.”

“I feel like I should be offended.” I commented, squinting at them. Deuce didn’t seem like he meant any ill will. Ace and Grim, on the other hand, were just being jerks. Their mean streaks were showing again. “But… I’m actually fine with messy hair, so, whatever. Pros of keeping it short- I don’t have to brush it that much. Anyway!”

I clapped my hands together, turning to Ace.

“We need to get you to Riddle!”

The ginger leaned his head back and groaned, clearly not wanting to do this. “I hate that brat…”

“This wouldn’t have happened if you didn’t eat his tart.” Deuce sighed. “Honestly, it’s one thing after another with you. I feel bad for Miss Qui- uh…” He cleared his throat. “Eleanora. You keep putting her through so much trouble.”

“Oh, shut up. You already gave me your lecture.” Ace clicked his tongue. He closed his eyes and slumped over, shaking his head. “Man, this sucks…”

“Which is why the faster we get it over with the better.” I suggested, offering a small smile, patting him on his free shoulder. “It’ll be fine~!”

“Hmph.”

“Let’s go, go, go!” Grim took that chance to hop onto my shoulder, nearly knocking me over once again. “W-Whoa! Warning, please.”

“You’ll be fine. Now charge!” Grim stood up halfway, placing a paw on the top of my head, pointing at the large building before us. “Our shiny new school life awaits! Out of the way, you peasants! The Great Grim is making a path as a student of Night Raven College!”

Ace and Deuce shared a look, before shaking their heads and following after. There was no discouraging the cat monster; he had his heart and mind set. I flashed them an apologetic smile, wincing whenever Grim would shout right next to my ear. He was monologuing the entire way down the hill. If he wasn’t growing on me so much I might have considered telling him to shut up, but I didn’t want to be a jerk and ruin his good mood. He was having the time of his life.

And… we were all finally starting to get along. I hummed a little, a song stuck in my head, and I walked between the two teens. Continuing to be super giggly and amused from what happened earlier, I reached over and linked arms with the boys, surprising them. “Let’s do this!” I declared, smiling ear-to-ear. “Riddle can’t say “no” to all of us!”

“I’m pretty sure he can.” Ace grimaced. To my surprise he didn’t pull away. Neither did Deuce. “He’s pissed.”

I looked at him in alarm, deeply confused. “Wait, what? How do you know?”

Deuce sighed. “He collared three more people this morning. I was telling Ace before we realized you were missing.”

“Oooh… dear.” This was going to be rough. “W-Well, I mean, he’s still a reasonable person, right? I met him once and he didn’t seem too… bad. I’m sure the apology will go well.”

“You met him!?” The blue-haired boy was startled. “When?”

“That’s-”

“She had lunch with him.” Ace grumbled, cutting me off. “Before… you know… the detention thing?”

“Nyaha!” Grim laughed. “Speaking of detention, maybe you should take up being a janitor for the day? You can’t even use magic! Just look at that crappy collar around your neck- mine is so much more stylish!”

Wow, that was petty. I tried to hide a snort, seeing the way Ace shot the him a glare, but it was so hard. The ginger kind of deserved it for what he did to us yesterday. Gods, _was_ that only yesterday? So much nonsense has happened since then it was hard to tell. I coughed into my fist, feeling my throat get a little scratchy. “Grim… behave.”

I said that, but there was no harshness in my voice. Grim looked at me, blue eyes flashing, the cat monster having the time of his life. “I _am_ behaving! I’m just saying; if he can’t use magic, he should trying cleaning up the school for once! You did it.”

Oh. That was… kind of sweet. I think? I’m not too sure.

Ace didn’t seem to like it though. His teeth grit together and his red eyes stared daggers into Grim, the teen very irritated. “I’m gonna remember this! Just you wait- when I get my magic back…”

“Don’t you dare make a scene.” Deuce hissed, looking over the top of my head to frown at Ace. “The headmaster told us to stay out of trouble, remember? Besides, we need to focus on getting you to apologize to the dorm leader. Without your magic you’re going to have problems in class. We have to be careful.”

“You say it like it’s going to go well.” Ace grumbled.

“That’s because it is!” I told him, trying to cheer him up. I tugged on his arm, smiling at him when I saw his eyes meet mine. “Let’s just give it a try, okay? I promised to go with you, so you won’t be alone. Your emotional support disaster human is here!”

“Emotional-? Ugh, you’re saying weird things again.” Ace turned his head away, scowling. “Where do you come up with this stuff?”

“Good question. I don’t know.” I snickered at his expression. I then looked up at Deuce. “Are you coming with us?”

Grim straightened at that, flashing his shark teeth at the blue-haired teen. “Oooh~ yes! Observe the apology with us! We still have plenty of time before class and I’m curious about the other dorms. You can show us around Heartslabyul after, nyaha!”

“This isn’t a show!” Ace snapped, raising his voice at the cat monster. I flinched, recoiling away at the shout, leaning closer to Deuce. Ace ground his teeth together and slid his arm out from my mine, squeezing his eyes shut and ruffling his hair in frustration. “Damn iiiit! Screw all of this! Why do I have to apologize when _he_ stuck the collar on me!? It’s so stupid!”

I resisted the urge to sigh. “You were the one who ate the tart. If you asked for permission, he wouldn’t have gotten mad. Now come on- we’re almost to the dorm mirror place.”

“The Hall of Mirrors.” Deuce supplied. I snapped my fingers, pointing at him with my now freed hand, pulling my left arm away from his own.

“Yes! That. The place you just said. Thank you.”

...

I was starting to memorize the path to the east building. The Hall of Mirrors was as intriguing as ever; with the varying designs on the mirror frames to make identifying each one easier, as well as just how _different_ the dorms seemed to be from one another. The underwater one was the most curious one, though I knew I was going to have to avoid it at all costs. I couldn’t swim very well, nonetheless breathe in water, which made me wonder…

Are all its inhabitants like that one guy from the entrance ceremony? Oh, what was his name again? Azure? No... oh! Azul. Right, I remember now. Leona had called him an octopus and when I questioned it, Azul said he had given himself legs to attend the school. I wondered what his octopus form looked like? It must be so cool~!

Ughhhh, I want to know more. This place is full of so much magic and insanity; I need to know what to expect.

Ah… the Heartslabyul mirror. I was about to follow the boy through the portal- expecting it to work like the magic mirror did- only to find myself frozen, feet halting me in my tracks.

_Roses._

The sculpted flowers framed the mirror, placed delicately on the row of cards lining the edges of the curved glass. At the top of the mirror was a large heart with two spades shooting through it like arrows, a little crown resting atop the heart itself with a large banner sprawled out at the bottom with the word _HEARTSLABYUL_ written on it. At the steps was a large sculpted book, attached to the mirror portal itself. The design was incredible; it must have taken whoever created it a _very_ long time to complete.

And yet…

Fear struck my heart at the very sight of it, my lungs seeming to stutter and shrivel up as a result. All I could think about was what Lilia said. His warning. His advice. All of it left me cold, leaving me to stare at the fake roses with an irrational kind of panic. I told myself before I wasn’t going to think about it, that I wasn’t going to worry about it, but apparently that was one giant lie.

Because now it was all I could think about. I was imagining the thorns creeping up from within, clawing at my insides and choking me, suffocating me.

It was… awful.

I was so lost in my thoughts I didn’t really hear Ace when the boy spoke. “Oi, what’s the hold up? El?” Footsteps. Orange entered my field of vision, blocking the mirror from sight, and I inhaled sharply, brown eyes snapping up to see a pair of red ones gazing right at me. Ace stopped waving his hand, frowning deeply. “You okay?”

“Is something wrong with your throat?” Deuce inquired, leaning over slightly to try and get a better view. Ace was in his way. “Does it hurt from yesterday?”

“H-Huh?” It was then I realized; I had my hand wrapped around my neck, as if trying to feel for the roses said to be growing inside of me. I swallowed thickly, blinking several times as I attempted to snap myself out of my super. “Oh! N-No, I-I’m sorry, I just- no. I’m fine. Let’s just… go. It’s been a weird morning. Walking disaster, remember? Haha.”

Gods, something is wrong with me. I’m constantly freaking out over one thing or another. Grim and the boys stared at me for a moment, clearly concerned, but when I gave Ace a light shove the tension in the air faded slightly.

“Let’s go~! Come on, slowpokes! Riddle is gonna stay angry at this rate.”

“Alright, I’m going! I’m going! Jeez.” The ginger shook his head at me. “And you’re the slow one!” 

“Oi-! Whoa.” I gaped, watching as he just walked through the glass mirror. He literally… phased through it. What?

Stepping forward hesitantly, I pressed my fingers to glass and yelped when my hand started to go through it. Startled, I retracted the limb and stumbled back right into Deuce. Grim shouted at me to be more careful and I apologized for bumping into the teen, but then I went right back to observing the mirror- poking it and watching the glass ripple like water.

“Th-This is so different from the magic mirror…”

Deuce chuckled at me, bringing a hand up to his chin to try. “Yes. The magic mirror is used for long distance travels, while these are to reach a very specific place. It won’t hurt you. See?” He walked up onto the book, placing a leg halfway through the mirror before holding his hand out. “Come on.”

I mean, I’m not really scared of it… but okay.

Deuce is seriously a gentleman compared to Ace. I awkwardly reached out, grabbing onto his hand and following him through the mirror. For a moment Grim and I were blinded by a bright light, but then it was gone and I could hear the cat monster gasping in awe. Pulling my hand away, I opened my eyes and stilled once more- though whether it was in amazement, confusion, or horror I could not tell.

Now don’t get me wrong- Heartslabyul was gorgeous, no mistake about it. The dorm itself was large and very marchen-esque, like something out of a fairytale, as it resembled a castle. It was colored red with beige accents, towering at least three stories high, with heart-shaped windows and doors. A banner hung from the rooftops, and surrounding the dorm itself was a giant hedge maze.

But… something about this all felt so familiar. Hauntingly so.

The cobblestone path we were on that led to the dorm entrance was lined by trees and potted bushes, all of which were adorned with roses. _Red roses._ And in the middle of the path, in a little square that branched off into separate sections of the maze, was a quaint little fountain. If I wasn’t in so much shock I might have had the urge to stick my hands in the mini waterfalls to feel the the rushing water.

“This place is…”

Grim’s loud voice next to my ear had me flinch. “This place is beautiful!” He exclaimed. “It couldn’t be more different from ours!”

While grateful for the distraction, I sent the cat monster a defensive look. “I made some progress cleaning the dorm, thank you very much! The ghosts even helped.”

“When?” He demanded, skeptical. As we spoke Ace and Deuce went to talk to some students they saw near the dorm entrance, who were pointing at the hedge maze.

I raised my eyebrows at Grim. “Uhhh, this morning? Before I left? We cleaned the baths.”

“Wait, you guys actually worked together!? I thought you were scared of the ghosts?”

“I-I am, kinda… but they’re not _so_ bad.” I really do think they just want company. “I even gave them names! Moe, Larry, and Curly.” I told him which ghost was which after I listed off the names, and I grinned proudly when I spoke of our achievements. “Because of them I was able to feel clean again! They also helped out a bit with the basement so I could do laundry.”

“Blech…” Grim grimaced. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. They _are_ bad. They stuck me in the bath when I was looking for you!”

Oh. I think I did hear him say something like that earlier when I snuck up on the boys. “S-Sorry…” I probably could have woken Grim up before I left to warn him about the ghosts and their plans, but the thought didn’t even cross my mind. Whoops.

Before we could say anything else Ace and Deuce called out, waving us over, and ignoring the unsettling feeling forming in my heart… I followed them into the hedge maze. It really was so disturbing. I kept rubbing at my throat anxiously, glancing at all these flower bushes and trees with great paranoia. The fact that we were looking for someone only unnerved me more.

Just what _was_ this sensation…? Deja vu?

I think I’m starting to recall… what exactly it was I dreamed last night. What I _have_ been dreaming about since I woke up in this world. This curse- maybe it was a good thing I know about it after all. If Lilia hadn’t said anything I might have been more scared, feeling so lost and confused as to why all of this felt so familiar.

But… while I remembered the rose trees and the maze itself… there was something else I was forgetting. A person. There was someone in that dream I had been chasing, who kept alluding me no matter how much I followed them. Who was it though?

Are they part of the memories that had been stolen from me…

...or are they a link _to_ them?

If that’s the case, then how? Who is the person I’m dreaming about? How could they be connected to the memories I’ve lost if I’ve never met them before? Are they here in Twisted Wonderland? Are they in Heartslabyul?

That would have to be it, right? The roses, the maze, it all… made sense. I think I could just be grasping at straws, but I don’t know, I’m just- _I’m scared._ I’m panicking and trying to keep it together, but it isn’t working. And…

Wait. My train of thoughts came to an abrupt halt, seeing someone standing upon a ladder in the distance. Who was that? Is he… painting the roses? Oh my gods, he really is.

As we approached I could make out his features, the stranger probably a little older than Ace and Deuce. His hair was an extreme shade of orange that reached his chin in length and his bangs were clipped back out of his face. He was wearing the same uniform as the rest of the boys, and… he almost seemed bothered by something?

“Crap…” I heard him mutter as we approached. “If I don’t get this done I’ll lose my head!”

Yeah, this is way too familiar. I don’t like it.

Grim blinked from his spot on my shoulder, surprised. “Someone’s there! It doesn’t look like Riddle though…”

The stranger paused upon hearing our footsteps, looking down at us from atop his ladder. He had some very green eyes. “Hm? Who are you guys? Do you need something? Uwaaah~? Is that the magicless girl I’ve heard so much about!?” He wasted no time in jumping down from the ladder, stepping forward with a big grin on his face. That was when I noticed the little diamond painted on his cheek. I stumbled back, uncomfortable with the close proximity. “Haha~ you’re so cute! That’s a uniform you’re wearing, right? Are you a student here now? That’s incredible!”

“Uh, th-that’s- um, y-yeah, I mean- kinda?” There were too many questions for my distracted brain to keep up with. Thankfully Ace came to my rescue, holding his arm out to push me behind him. “Hah-?”

“What are you doing with all that paint?” Ace questioned, looking at all the cans spread around the area, redirecting the stranger’s attention..

“Oh, this?” The person asked, surprised. “As you can see, I’m painting the roses red.”

Everyone was surprised, though… I had sort of figured it out already. I’m really starting to think that Ace and Deuce aren’t that bright, but then again… neither was I.

“E-Eh?” Deuce exclaimed, eyes wide. “Wh-Why would you do that!? There’s nothing wrong with the roses, is there?”

The stranger chuckled. “Your reactions are so fresh and precious~! How cute. Now that I get a better look, you guys are totally the freshmen who broke that super expensive chandelier, aren’t you?” He grinned when he saw Ace hang his head, the boy utterly distraught.

“We’re gonna be hearing about that until the day we graduate. We’ll never live it down…”

“And _you’re_ also the one who angered the dorm leader last night by eating his tart!” He pointed the paintbrush at Ace. He didn’t sound all that accusing, speaking with a light-hearted tone, but somehow that only made him more suspicious. I didn’t trust that smile of his. “I’ve never felt so lucky! Meeting the notorious newcomers like this in the morning… oh! Hey, hey, hey!”

He rushed over to Ace and Deuce.

“Let’s take a selfie together, ‘kay? Come on, get together!” I yelped when I found myself being pushed back, Ace and Deuce shouting in protest when the stranger pushed us close to each other. I was vaguely aware of a hand on my right shoulder and another on Grim, the two of us sandwiched between Ace and Deuce. Standing behind the the two boys, the stranger held up a cellphone, telling us to look up. He struck a peace sign pose with his free hand. “Yaaay~!”

A flash blinded all of us, but the man didn’t seem to care. He was rambling away, more than excited.

“Can I put this on Magicam? Tell me your names so I can tag you!”

What is happening? What on earth is Magicam?

“D-Deuce Spade…” The blue-haired teen answered, clearly disoriented yet too polite to decline.

Our ginger companion, however, seemed a bit more miffed by the current situation. His red eyes narrowed, the boy folding his arms over his chest. “Ace.”

“Grim! And this is my henchman, Eleanora.” I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at the cat monster. 

“Not a henchman.”

There was a _ding_ from the stranger’s phone and he beamed. “Alright~ upload finished. I’m Cater Diamond, by the way. Third year.” He smiled at us, winking. “You can call me Cater! Or Cay. It’s nice to meet you!”

“N-Nice to meet you, too…” Talk about whiplash. Jeez. I thought I talked really fast, but this guy was going all over the place. He blinked and turned to me again, smile broadening.

“Oh, yeah! As I was saying before- you’re that magicless girl living in that crappy dorm, right? Good on you, living in a place like that. It’s super dark there and you can’t get any good magicam photos! You have my sympathy.”

It sure didn’t sound like it. Grim seemed to be sharing similar sentiments, narrowing his eyes at the stranger calling himself Cater. “This guy sure is running his mouth an awful lot…” He sounded like he was tempted to attack him.

Sensing this, I quickly raised a hand up and placed it gently on the cat monster’s head. “Down, kitty.”

“Tch.”

Cater suddenly jumped. Panic flitted across his features and he whirled around, hurrying back over to the ladder. “Gah- I can’t waste time doing this! I need to finish painting these! The party is in two days; if I don’t get this done Riddle will have my head!”

Yeah, no. This was becoming really freaky. I really wish I knew more about the curse. Who was the person I was chasing? Why is this scene so familiar to me? What could that person possibly have to do with _my_ memories, and why are those aforementioned memories so similar to what is happening now? This is all so dizzying.

The more I try to figure it out the scratchier my throat became, and attempting to remember is making me nauseous. And although my lungs themselves did not feel quite like they were acting up, breathing was still becoming so difficult. Just what… is this? What is this life I have now? Lilia, I’m scared. I wish we talked more on the subject. This is all so terrifying.

Please help me.

What am I supposed to do?

Suddenly Cater shouted. I recoiled back, skittish, and almost latched onto Deuce in my fright. Cater whirled around, looking at us with a big grin, eyes bright. “Hey, hey; will you guys help me paint!? Pleeeeaase?”

“Why are you even doing something so weird?” Ace demanded, raising an eyebrow. “Who the heck paints roses?”

“Well, red roses are the most photogenic at a party… I guess?” Cater tried to explain, but it wasn’t at all helpful. The ginger shrugged. “I don’t really know. But I’ve also got to change the flamingos’ colors for the croquet match. I’m super busy, basically. That’s why it would be really awesome if you guys helped out.”

There were so many things wrong with what he just said. I don’t even know where to begin in order to point them all out. “W-Why would you… Why would you paint flamingos?” Those poor animals. Heck, these poor flowers! Heartslabyul is weird.

Grim and I really seemed to be on the same page today, because holy crap was he agreeing with me a lot. “Your chores make no sense!” He exclaimed, making a face. Cater laughed, seeming to find amusement in that. Deuce and Ace, however, were looking very thoughtful. Deuce brought a hand up to his chin, frowning.

“So that tart that was eaten really _was_ going to be served at the dorm leader’s birthday party?” He questioned, eyebrows furrowing. The teen shook his head, sighing. “No wonder he was upset.”

Ace grimaced. Before anyone could say anything else Cater set his brush down into the nearby paint can, waggling a finger at us. “Bzzt!” He said, grinning. “Wrong! That isn’t it at all.”

I blinked. “It is?”

“Th-Then who’s birthday is it!?” Ace asked, eyes wide.

“It’s not anyone’s birthday.” Cater informed.

What? I’m sorry, but _what?_ Then why did Riddle behead Ace?

Cater laughed at our reactions, tucking a few strands of hair behind his ear. “You guys are seriously too cute. Ah, how I love freshmen. Okay, so, the story is; we’ll be having our traditional unbirthday party in two days. The dorm leader chooses a day that isn’t anyone’s birthday and throws a tea party, and we spend that tea party celebrating the lack of a birthday!”

“So it’s…” My eyes squinted, headache worsening with his explanation. “It’s a party… where you congratulate each other… for not having a birthday?”

“Yup!”

“What’s with that?” Ace exclaimed, scrunching his nose up. It really was very weird. Cater shrugged, smiling, before picking his paintbrush back up.

“We can worry about the reason later, ‘kay? All we need to worry about right now is painting the roses red! You guys _are_ helping me, right?” Wait, but we never actually agreed to- whoa! I yelped when a paintcan was suddenly thrust into my arms. “You and Ace can use these to paint since you don’t have magic! Deuce, Grim, you guys can use magic.”

“E-Eh!?” Deuce was alarmed. “We can paint with magic?”

Grim frowned, folding his arms over his chest. “I’ve never done anything like before…”

“It’s fine, it’s fine!” Cater said, hurrying down the ladder. His expression and voice were forever lighthearted and carefree, and while I wasn’t against helping I really wanted to get the apology done and over with so Ace wouldn’t be grumpy the rest of the day. Unfortunately, I don’t think that was going to happen. The older ginger was already pushing Ace and I towards the tree he was just working on, while snatching Grim up and handing him to Deuce. “We’ll figure it out. We gotta hurry if we don’t want the dorm leader to take the rest of our heads!”

Ah, okay… yeah. I don’t want to make Riddle angry.

Although why he would be angry at _me_ when I’m not even part of the dorm I’m not sure, but whatever. I’d rather not get Deuce or Ace into anymore trouble. I reluctantly grabbed the paintbrush and set the can down, pretending not to notice the way my hand was shaking. I felt so dizzy and cold… my head was spinning.

I felt so terrible for these flowers, yet if we didn’t color them more people would wind up getting their magic cut off. They would lose their heads. My eyebrows furrowed as I slowly brought the brush up to the rose tree, questioning how such a plant was even possible, before begrudgingly coloring the white petals crimson. “Painting the roses red~! We’re painting the roses red…”

Ace gave me a weird look, bringing the ladder over and starting to climb it so he could reach farther up. “What are you singing?”

Huh? Oh. “I-I don’t know.” It just popped into my head.

I almost didn’t feel like myself, but singing random songs _was_ something I liked to do. All this stress is just messing with me. I tried to ignore the ominous symbolism of the red paint dripping along the white flowers and instead focused on the music inside my head, bopping my head along to the tune and humming.

“Don’t tell the Queen what you have seen or say that’s what we said~! But we’re painting the roses red! Yes, painting the roses red!” The words spilled from my lips naturally, some of the nausea going away as a result. Ace snorted at the lyrics.

“Seriously?”

“S-Sorry. But, hey! It makes it more fun, right? I think.”

“If that’s what you wanna call it.” He grinned, dragging the brush against several flowers and drowning them in some rather big chunks of paint. “It’s not boring, that’s for sure.”

I laughed. In the background I could hear Cater instructing Deuce and Grim, telling them to get out their magical pens. “Now remember; not pink, not green, not aquamarine! We’re painting the roses red!”

My eyes widened when I heard that and I paused, whirling my head around to glance over my shoulder, tensing. I almost expected someone to come marching up, shouting and waving some kind of heart-shaped fan around. My mind flashed back to that statue of the queen, who had looked so very snobbish. I remembered Ace’s description. “Who dares to taint, with vulgar paint, the royal flowerbed…?”

Ace sighed. “I really wanna use magic…”

I looked at him sympathetically. “Sorry… maybe next time?”

“Hmph! I’m still joining your dorm, so there won’t _be_ a next time.” Wow, okay. Sure. He frowned at me. “Why’d you stop singing? That song was actually kinda catchy.”

I snorted, a grin spreading across my face as I started painting again. Using such a large brush was something I was not used to, as normally I worked with canvases. “Aww~ are you saying I have a nice voice?”

“As if. You sound like a dying cat.”

I blew a raspberry. “Rude. But you know what? Fine.” A wicked grin spread across my face and looked up at him, resisting the urge to laugh. “They’re going to lose their heads~ for painting the roses red! It serves them right, they planted white and roses should be red! Ohh~ they’re going to lose their heeeaaads~ for painting the roses red!”

I made a popping noise to indicate the end of the song. At least, I’m pretty sure it was the end since no more lyrics were playing in my head. Ace sent me a sour look. “Now you’re just being mean.”

“Oi, my singing voice is _beautiful_ thank you very much. You’re the one who was being mean first.”

“Excuses.”

“Ha!” Banter aside, we were making quite good progress on the trees. We moved to the next one, painted those flowers red, and continued to the one after. “So, I have a super important question.” I began, and listened to Ace hum, the boy begrudgingly painting. “This is a high school… right?”

“Uh, no?” He leaned over to peer out from his side of the tree, raising an eyebrow. “It’s called Night Raven _College_. Are you stupid?”

I’m about to smack this boy with my brush. “I’m more confused, thanks. You and Deuce are sixteen, aren’t you? Well, earlier I met this dude who is… practically immortal and I don’t know if it’s a cultural thing or what that just hasn’t been explained to me, but where I’m from students don’t go to college so young unless they’re geniuses. I’m half convinced this is a high school, but like you said- it’s called Night Raven College. So I don’t really know.”

He blinked. Ace then went back to painting, saying, “Sounds like a cultural difference to me. Where exactly are you from?”

“...That’s a good question.” I said after an awkward moment. “I’ll tell you when we’re not painting.”

The ginger made a face, unimpressed by my answer. “Tch. Lame. But anyway, most people are only in school here until they turn sixteen. After that everyone can go to a college like this if they want, and since we get people from all over it’s not weird to have some older dudes.” He leaned over again, sticking his tongue out at me. “You’re still strange though. Gehe!”

Rude.

Realization suddenly dawned on Ace. “Wait, is that why you were freaking out back in the headmaster’s office?”

“...Maybe.”

He laughed. “You really are a disaster human!”

“Sh-Shut up! I am not! I mean, I am, but I’m not! Now get to painting! We’re almost done here.”

“You really are too old to be a regular freshman, haha!”

“I’m gonna hurl this paint can at you! I’m crazy; I’ll do it!”

We hurled comments like that at each other for a good five minutes, moving to the last tree in sight that was white. We had just finished when Grim let out a startled yell. Oh no… what happened now? I cringed and turned to see different colored roses on the tree they were on, not a single one of them red. Ace and I picked up our paint cans and made our way over, observing the mess.

Deuce brought a hand up to his forehead, groaning. “I keep making them blue…”

“Okay, let me try one more time…!” Grim took a deep breath, concentrating, and the crystal around his neck lit up. Next thing anyone knew, all the roses were on fire and I was screeching, quickly diving to hide behind Ace. I coughed as a result, quickly bringing a hand up to cover my mouth, and watched as the blue flames ate away at the flowers. “Gah! Th-That wasn’t supposed to happen!”

Cater, though still wearing a smile, looked like he regretted his decision on making us help. “You two are way worse at this than I thought you’d be…”

Ace scowled, placing the paint cans down. He was fed up with all of this. “Aren’t the roses fine being white? They’re beautiful.”

...Huh. That was a sentence I never would have expected from him.

Cater sighed at Ace, shaking his head and folding his arms over his chest. “Red roses are tradition for an unbirthday party. Furthermore, the flamingos _must_ be seven colors for croquet, with hedgehogs as the balls. But, if you really like the white roses, you should know that we use them in the spring garden’s flower concert. These are all very important rules for Heartslabyul members to know!”

“They’re strange.” Grim stated.

He laughed. “These rules are said to have been decided by the Queen of Hearts herself! Riddle is especially passionate when it comes to following these rules. Heck, he loves following rules in general- more than any of the other strict dorm leaders!” Cater then paused, bringing a hand up and resting it on the side of his neck, as if recalling something horrible. “I… won’t deny that he can go a bit too far sometimes, though.”

“That’s right!” Ace snapped to attention. “I still need to speak to him! Is Riddle inside?”

“Hm?” Cater blinked. “I… think there’s still some time left before he leaves. Oh, but before you head to find him- did you bring an apology tart?”

“N-No?” The boy looked confused. “I came here first thing this morning, so I’m empty-handed…” 

Cater cringed. “Ooooh no. Okay. Sorry about this.”

I blinked, staring with wide eyes when he brandished his magical pen. The crystal was red just like the others. Ace took a step back, alarmed, and Deuce hurriedly held an arm out in front of me, pushing me behind him. I was starting to notice a pattern between the boys.

“Wh-What are you doing?” I asked Cater, a little scared of his intentions. He wasn’t going to attack us with magic, was he? Then older teen flashed an smile.

“You guys are going against the Queen of Hearts’ law. Rule fifty-three: “one must always return what they stole”. Until you do that, I can’t let you in the dorm.”

Holy frick.

“Haaah~?” Ace was _not_ happy. “The hell kind of rule is that!?”

“I’d lose my head if I let you in the dorm like this.” Cater explained, chuckling. His expression darkened, smile a bit more sinister. All cheeriness was gone from his voice. “Again, I’m really sorry about this, but you need to leave before Riddle sees that you’re here.”

This man was freaking threatening us. Dude. That is not how you treat the people you just made help you paint roses.

Ace stepped back, glancing at us nervously over his shoulder, visibly alarmed. “G-Guys, do something! His face just got super scary!”

“Wh-What am I supposed to do!?” I exclaimed, alarmed by our new acquaintance’s sudden hostility. I moved further behind the blue-haired teen that was standing in front of me, curling my hands close to my chest. Grim sat beside my feet, eyeing Cater nervously. “I can’t fight! I’m supposed to be keeping Grim _out_ of trouble, remember?”

“Why should I even help?” Deuce demanded, staring down at the ginger. “This is your problem.”

Oh, ouch. He really didn’t hold back when it came to him, did it? Ace looked very scared, seeing how Cater was gradually approaching us. “Please!? I-I can’t use magic right now! A-Ahhh, he’s getting closer! Hurry!”

Frick, frick, frickity- gah! What are we supposed to do? Attack him?

Seeing Ace panic so much was starting to make me panic, and I found myself tugging frantically on Deuce’s sleeve. “H-His pen is glowing!” Oh gods, oh frick, oh no, okay; here we go. He’s totally about to throw a spell at us. Deuce looked down at me in surprise.

He then glanced at Ace and at Cater, emotions twisting on his face in conflict, before he shook his head and stepped forward, pulling out his pen. “Grim! Let’s go!”

I felt like tearing my hair out. We told the headmaster there wouldn’t be any trouble; now we’re getting into trouble. I can’t afford to lose my spot in the dorm! Ace stood next to me, the two of us almost mimicking each other as we ruffled our hair in panic and frustration, watching as they all got into magic casting stances.

“Orders!” Deuce shouted, and it took me a second to realize he was talking to.

My face paled.

 _Oh no._ He wants me to tell him what to do. No… No, no, no! _I can’t do this._

“I-I don’t know! Uh, freakin’... cauldron! Just blast him with cauldrons! Act like he’s the ink monster!” I have no idea what sort of spells this guy can use. “Scare him away!”

This was bad, this was very very bad! Please don’t let the headmaster or any of the teachers find out about this. Hoooh, man, my heart is racing, my anxiety is spiking; I can’t do this! W-We barely survived yesterday! Now we have to get into another battle today? I mean, this person certainly isn’t a monster that is trying to kill us with a freaking pick ax, but he’s certainly throwing spells at us.

I yelped and ducked down, watching as water sailed over my head.

“O-Oi!” Ace shouted, almost having gotten splashed himself. “Watch it!”

Grim was starting to look irritated, he and Deuce getting pushed back by all of Cater’s spells. “Damn it~! Why won’t he just stay down!? He keeps getting back up!” Grim swished his tail, ears drawing back as he bared his fangs. “He won’t stop putting out my flames!”

“Right as I feel like I’m defeating him, he recovers…” Deuce said, alarmed. “I-I don’t know that complicated of spells yet! If this was a fist fight, then maybe I’d stand a chance, but…! Ugh, Ace, Grim, we need to run! Eleanora, come here!”

“What-!? Whoa!” I wasn’t able to ask what he meant before he was rushing over, hoisting me up into his arms without hesitation or struggle. I yelped, grabbing onto the lapels of his uniform as he broke out into a run. “Gah!”

I leaned back, looking over Deuce’s shoulder at Cater- the ginger slowly fading from view. He smiled as he watched us run, giving a little wave. “Bye-bye~! Come back with that tart, okay!?” Ace and Grim were running beside us, keeping up pace with Deuce, the blue-haired boy strong enough to run at full pace even while carrying me.

I knew Cater was suspicious, but I didn’t think he would do a complete switch on us like that. Wasn’t fighting against school rules?

There’s so much I still don’t know.

Once we in the safe zone Deuce carefully set me down, keeping a hold of me as I clung to his arm for support, a bit dazed from all the shouting and panic. Our feisty companion, on the other hand, was positively _fuming._

“What the hell is his problem!?” Ace demanded, glaring in the direction of the hedge maze. “What an asshole! Turning us away just because we didn’t have a tart… He saw from the start that we weren’t carrying anything! Jerk only wanted us to paint the roses for him.”

Grim nodded, standing back up on his hind legs and folding his arms over his chest. “That Cater is a shrewd one.”

Deuce sighed. “We’ll just have to get a tart and try again later. For now-!” His eyes went wide as a ringing echoed across the land. “Crap! W-We’re gonna be late!”

“Wait, what!?” I looked at him, alarmed. “Late for what? Class?”

“Yes! The warning bell just rang!”

In the one year I had been freed from high school I had hoped I would never have to worry about rushing from classroom to classroom ever again. I always stressed myself out so much in trying to keep my attendance rate up, fearful of angering the teachers, but I was always sick most of the time so even if I didn’t wind up late I would still miss a lot of school in general. As a result a lot of my grades suffered.

And while I didn’t exactly want to be in school a second time, that reluctance to break rules was still strong within me. I can’t even run. Even with that potion Divus used that helped my lungs, the curse was still there. Lilia said that what happens in my dreams can affect my real-world body, too, albeit gradually, and I think some of the effects were already taking place. I have to be careful not to strain myself.

Which means… I’m going to end up being late. I could feel my heart drop at the prospect, my fingers reaching up and tangling themselves into my hair. “I-I’m so screwed! Oh no, no, no…” I don’t even know where any of the classrooms are save for the one. There’s no way I can get to class in time.

Grim looked horrified, most likely reaching the same conclusion I had. We made a whole student together, so if my attendance suffered his did as well. “M-My shiny new school life…! It’s going to be tainted on day one!”

Ace looked at us, unperturbed by all this. “What classes are you two in? You both _are_ first years, right?”

Wait. What classes _am_ I in?

“Oh gods, I don’t even know what classes I have!” I was on the verge of a panic attack. The boys looked at me in alarm, my anxiety spiking through the roof. I didn’t even want to imagine what kind of scary lectures I was going to be forced to sit through, or all the yelling that was going to happen. “I-I never asked, I never even got a schedule!”

Don’t cry. Don’t cry, don’t cry.

Frick. All the teachers are going to yell at me. They’re all going to shout and scream and snap.

I already know I’m useless, I didn’t want to have to sit through them all reminding me of it!

“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” I pressed my palms to my eyes before running my bangs back with my fingers, hair strands sticking up wildly as I tried to figure out what to do. “I-If I explain-!? No. No, no, no. That won’t work, there’s no way that would work; they wouldn’t believe me. No one would believe me. I should-”

“Hey.” A hand on my shoulder had me jump. Several pairs of eyes were staring down at me, red, blue, and sea-green. Ace frowned. “You’ll be fine.”

“Yeah!” Grim nodded, sitting on his shoulder. When did he move there? While I was muttering? What was happening? I lost focus for a second. “Besides, I know what class we’re in! The headmaster dropped by after I woke up! He said we’re in Class 1-A.”

“W-We are? You do?”

In all this time that I’ve known him I’ve never wanted to hug him more. This occasionally annoying cat monster just saved me.

“C-Class… 1-A…”

“We’re in the same class?” Deuce caught my attention, the boy sounding surprised. He smiled down at us. “I knew we were in the same grade, but to think that we’re in the same class too? Heh. Talk about lucky. Come on, you guys can walk with us; first period is potions.”

“P… Potions?” Wait. We’re in the same class? Really? “I-I’m so glad I met you guys…”

“You’re saying cheesy things again!” Ace pointed out. “Stop that.”

“I-I’m sorry.” Frick, I’m so emotional right now. Ugh. I need to stop. I sniffled, rubbing at my face and inhaling shakily. I was seriously about to have a meltdown right there. There is too much going on with my life right now and I can not keep up. Grim jumped over onto my shoulder, curling his tail around my neck, and needing some sort of comfort for my jittery self I found myself pinching the sleeves of the two boys on either side of me. “Sorry…”

Deuce chuckled. “You’re fine.”

“Such a disaster human.” Grim scolded. I snorted, lips trying to curl up a little at that. “You panic over every little thing.”

“I’m _sorry_ , okay?” I apologized with a little more sass that time. “I haven’t figured out how to cope with all this yet.”

“Oh, yeah.” Ace blinked. He looked down at me as we headed towards the mirror. “We’re done painting the roses! You never did say where you were from.”

Ah, frick. I did say I would tell him, didn’t I?

I hesitated right before the mirror, wondering how I should phrase it. “Well, uh… you know how the mirror made a mistake grabbing me- a magicless female?” The boys stared, waiting for me to continue. I awkwardly stuck a leg through the mirror, flashing them an awkward closed-eye grin. “Well, turns out I’m from a different world entirely, so~ yeah. I’m stuck here until Headmaster Crowley can help me find a way back. Basically, I’m an alien. Weeee~ wooo~! Do do dooo do do~!”

I wiggled my fingers at that, snorting at their stunned expressions as I slowly leaned back into the mirror, phasing through it.

“Surprise!”

Their shouts and Grim’s maniacal laughter as I fell the rest of the way through the portal was worth it. I really needed a dreamless nap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I literally could not write this chapter without playing "painting the roses red" on a loop, and I do not know why. My brain would not let me. I blame the singing part of the chapter, haha. XD Poor El is too freaked out to even realize Divus is the teacher for first period, haha. Grim to the rescue with the schedule knowledge~! 
> 
> ALSO! ALSO! teuffels on tumblr drew a beautiful picture of Lilia!!!! Of him doing the whole "rose in your mouth" thing!!! And you guys should check it out!!! Because it's beautiful!!! And I was in the midst of cooking my dinner when I saw it 'cause I was just strolling through Twisted Wonderland stuff on tumblr and I got so excited I almost dropped my phone on my hamburger while it was still in the skillet. XD I'm still so happy, haha. I love it so much. They draw Lilia so well. 
> 
> And the "dooo doo doo" thing El is doing at the end is mostly to the tone of the Eleventh Doctor's opening theme music from Doctor Who, haha. Dooo do dooo do~ do do do~ do do doooo~~ do dooo~ DO DOOOOOO~!!! 
> 
> Have a nice day/night! I'm going to bed now, haha.


	11. The First Day

After I made through it the mirror I found myself coughing, laughing a bit too hard after seeing their startled faces. I stumbled over and fell to my knees, cackling and wheezing, and watching as the boys came running through the portal so fast they almost tripped each other coming out of it. It was so ridiculously funny and based on their expressions _neither_ of them believed what I told them.

Grim had to help me explain what I meant on our way to the boys’ lockers. I stood awkwardly to the side, anxiety still very much prominent within my being as I stared at the supplies they were carrying. Headmaster Crowley really was so short-sighted sometimes. Would the teachers get mad at me? Grim and I were both one student, and we were enrolled without warning.

What if…? No. No, it’s going to be fine. I have to convince myself it’ll be fine.

“So the mirror brought you from another world- a land without magic?” Deuce asked, furrowing his brows in thought. “You not knowing certain things… makes a bit more sense now.”

Ace sighed, shaking his head at me. “I always knew you were a weird one. I never thought you’d be a freaking alien though.”

“Surprise…!” I waggled my fingers at him. Grim’s fur tickled my neck, the cat curled around my shoulders, but I ignored it. “Although you’re not really one to talk. You’re pretty weird yourself.”

He stuck his tongue out at me in response, not taking any offense. It was baffling how comfortable we were around each other; we all only met yesterday, yet we already had a decent grasp of each other’s personality and were unafraid of interacting with one another. Deuce even came over this morning to the dorm to check on Ace, and both boys worked with Grim to try and find me after it was revealed I was “missing”.

They might deny it… but we were totally friends.

Although that did leave me to wonder if this friendship would actually last.

“But that’s why I’m stuck here, basically.” I told them, watching as they closed their locker doors. I flashed a grin, bringing my hands up and poking my cheeks, speaking with a cheery tone. “I got kidnapped by the magic mirror! Woohoo~! Lovely, isn’t it?”

“You seriously have the worst luck.” Ace commented, walking over. I gave a small shrug, deciding not to inform them about the apparent curse stuck on me. I wanted to see if I could find anything about it in the library first.

“True facts. But hey- I did get to meet you guys.”

The ginger scrunched his nose up at me, bopping me on the head with his fist, books tucked to his side. “Bleh- you’re saying cheesy stuff again! I’m gonna sew your mouth shut if you keep it up.” Grim snickered upon hearing that. I merely laughed, grinning at Ace, finding great joy in his distaste for mushiness.

Deuce, on the other hand, looked downright touched. “Th-That’s…”

“Hm?” I blinked curiously, looking up at him. “That’s what?”

He cleared his throat, shaking his head. Deuce started walking, leaving us to follow, and with their long legs I wound up having a hard time trying to keep up with them. “It’s… nothing. Nevermind.” The blue-haired teen started shuffling through his books, looking at his schedule. “Let’s see, first class is potions with Divus Crewel, then magic history…”

Wait… hold up.

Our first class is with _Divus_ as the teacher? Oh gods. Auuuugh, there’s no way I can do it.

 _I can’t call him Master. I can’t._ Even though I know he’s made me do it several times already, I still have so much trouble saying it. _My poor heart isn’t going to survive this._

Following behind Ace and Deuce, we managed to get to the classroom with about twenty seconds to spare. Everyone was standing by some kind of closet, pulling out multiple lab coats fitted for each dorm, along with some color-coded goggles. Seeing as I wasn’t part of an actual dorm, I was expecting there to be none readied for me.

There wasn’t. My hunch was correct.

Instead I got to wear a left-over Heartslabyul one that was way too big. I placed the goggles on my forehead, feeling a little silly, and helped Grim tighten the pair he was wearing so it would actually fit his tiny skull. It was in the process of everyone getting ready that the bell rang and the door opened, and though I knew what to expect I still found myself looking past Deuce to watch.

The intimidating man who called himself a “teacher” came strolling into the room with an aura of confidence. The edge of the riding crop he carried tapped against the palm of his gloved hand, his intense grey eyes moving around the room. Remaining dressed in that hideous fur coat, unperturbed by the many potions and cauldrons decorating the room, he whirled around, staring us all down.

This man truly was not to be messed with. Holy mother of _frick._

I stepped behind Deuce, foolishly hoping that if questions were asked I would never get called upon and that I could just blend into the background. The blue-haired teen blinked when he saw me, face twisting in confusion before he decided to just focus on the teacher.

“So these are the fresh faces that are going to be sitting in my classroom from here on.” Divus Crewel mused with a smirk. “Hmm~ there seem to be some rare hair colors… not bad. Do make sure you take proper care of it.”

I have no idea what is considered “rare” here. On one side of me there’s a boy with red eyes and on the other there’s a boy with blue hair. Judging by his roots, the strands appear to be naturally colored. The man speaking himself is half-and-half with white and black. Heck, there are people in this classroom with green and purple hair! None of this makes sense.

How did such genetics even become possible? Is it because magic messed with the human dna and altered it to such lengths that it affected the natural order of things? Or is it just the way this world works? Ughhh, I’m so confused. I need to stop. I already feel so bland compared to everyone else; this was just going to make it worse.

The teacher walked up to the middle of the room, raising his voice. “My name is Divus Crewel! You all may feel free to call me _Master_ Crewel.”

Oh gods, he looked at me. This man knows I’m still gonna struggle in calling him that. I tried to lean out of his sight, biting down hard on my bottom lip as I tried to keep it from trembling, my face burning up as this stupidly beautiful man with his stupidly intimidating aura and stupidly chocolate sounding voice kept existing. I really was not going to survive. I’m already getting dizzy.

Grim gave me a weird look. His ears twitched, noting that my breathing was getting a little uneven.

_I wanna fight that ink monster again. Please, world, let me fight that ink monster again?_

No such luck. No ink monster appeared to battle me.

“Now, take your seats!”

There was no hesitation. Every single person in this classroom hurried to sit down, and I found myself being sandwiched between Ace and Deuce with Grim on my lap.

Divus Crewel walked over to his desk, picking up several sheets of paper. He then moved over to one side of the room, passing the papers out to each student. “Class will begin with the basics of potion making. Therefore, in order to ensure there be no accidents, I will be _beating_ the names and appearances of one hundred different types of medicines and poisons into your brains.”

Papers distributed, he grabbed the end of the riding crop, staring everyone down with a cold smirk.

“Is that understood? We’ll cover fungi later, so make sure you memorize these first. We don’t want you going about eating random food off the ground, now do we?” I held the paper up to my face, staring and reading at what was on the sheet, trying to distract myself from very attractive man speaking. “Dogs often eat what they find lying around, after all…”

What is with this man and his freaking obsession with canines? It almost reminds me of something, but once again that memory is alluding me. Feeling a familiar pounding start in my head, I decided not to focus on it and instead risked a glance up at the teacher- watching him slam a hand against his desk and point the riding crop at us all. I jumped a little at the loud noise, but was careful not to hurt to Grim.

“Your training will be strict, little puppies!” He declared. “If I find any red marks on your tests, there _will_ be punishment.”

Brain, don’t you dare. I am an innocent human being. I have avoided relationships and all that had pertained to them throughout my school years. I even properly turned down anyone who tried anything. As a result of this I still don’t understand certain innuendos and it takes me a bit to realize if a dirty joke is even being told, so why…?

Why am I _reacting_ like this?

Deuce saved me from the realm of embarrassment when he spoke, whispering quietly to us, snapping me out of my thoughts. “What’s a fungi?”

I brought a hand up to my mouth, muffling a snort as I didn’t want to be rude, and spoke in a low voice, hoping no one noticed how red my face was. “Think mushrooms.” I told him, seeing his eyes light up in understanding. “You can find certain ones growing on trees and stuff.”

“Ooohhh…”

"Even better, think of this: why did the mushroom go to the dance? Because he was a _fungi."_ I actually snickered that time. Deuce stared for a moment before the joke registered and he groaned, shaking his head at me. "Good, right?"

"Terrible, actually." 

Ace gave us a weird look, rolling his eyes and leaning back into his seat with a scowl. “I'm not gonna comment on how cringy that was. Instead, I'm gonna talk about how we have _one hundred_ medicines and poisons to memorize. I’m horrible at that kind of thing! This is gonna suck…”

Welp. My previous assumption was correct; these two really aren’t the brightest. It was no wonder we almost got kicked out by the headmaster. I looked down when I felt Grim lean against my stomach, the cat monster sighing heavily. “I want to cast spells! The only thing that matters when it comes to grass is whether or not it tastes good, right?”

I placed a hand on his stomach, growing surprised when he didn’t claw at me. Most cats didn’t like having their belly touched as it was a vulnerable spot for attackers. “It won’t be good if you die from it.” I said, exasperated and just a little bit concerned. I glanced at the two boys on either side of me, both seeming a little hopeless.

This was going to be a rough school year, wasn’t it? Jeez.

Turning my gaze away, I watched as Divus Crewel answered a question one of the students had. Then I focused on my paper, reading what was on it, and moved to look at Ace- flashing him an awkward smile. “I… I’m pretty good at memorizing stuff for tests. I-If you need help I… I could-

He never let me finish. Ace sat up straight, eyes wide and grin bright. “Really!? Aha~ you’re awesome, El!”

“Will you help me, too?” I heard Deuce ask, and I turned to see him smiling as well. “Please? I’m not too terribly good with homework.”

“O-Oh, uh, sure.”

This was… new.

Back in high school I would always get my homework done in class and pass the majority of my classes, but I never really helped anyone study before. Would I even be good at it? So long as it wasn’t math it should be fine. Granted potion-making did seem to be close to chemistry, and I didn’t exactly do well in that specific class. I had missed so many days of school during that trimester and the teacher didn’t explain anything decently at all… so I wound up failing miserably.

I almost shuddered to remember how she yelled at me during one experiment. Neither my partner nor I were sure what to do with the mineral after we lit it on fire, as the teacher had merely said to “let it go”. There were some glass tubes in front of us and after asking my partner, she suggested that we put it in there. So I did.

And the teacher was _not_ happy at all. She screamed so loud the entire class went silent and I found myself standing there taking the brunt of her anger, as I had been the one in control of the mineral. I stood there frozen and took the lecture, goggles fogging up as the tears welled in my eyes, and everyone- every single student- just stared as she shouted. My partner was rather impressed with me by the time it was done, as she would have just stormed out of the room.

But I was _not_ okay after that. I was a shaking, trembling mess and I still had another class to take before the day ended.

If potions wound up being anything like that class, with Divus being revealed as that kind of teacher… I think any mental stability I have left will just shatter, especially with all I’m being put through right now.

I inhaled sharply upon hearing Grim speak, the cat monster raising his chin proudly. “I’m a genius, so I don’t need any help! A-Although I will be observing your lessons for… curiosity.”

A weak laugh escaped my lips. Hating how I was starting to find comfort in this annoying creature, I scratched behind his ears and smiled weakly when I felt him try to hide his purr. My voice cracked a little. “S-Sounds like a plan.” He really was such an egotistical brat. He was growing on me quick though, no doubt about that.

The rest of class went on a bit more quietly. Sometime during it I found myself shrieking in surprise when books suddenly slammed onto my desk, and when I looked up Divus Crewel was standing there smirking at me, riding crop soon getting pressed under my chin. Deuce, Grim, and Ace all looked terrified of the man, and I found myself growing very light headed when the teacher spoke.

“Your textbooks, little puppy.” He informed, eyes half-lidded. I choked, heart feeling as though it had leapt into my throat. “Dire informed me to give them to you, seeing as you’ll need them for your classes. Study hard like a good girl, alright?”

“Y-Y-Yes, sir. I-I-I m-mean, uh…”

He’s too intense! The man was standing there _waiting_ for me to call him a certain a word.

“Y… Yes… M-M…”

I hate this! Everyone is watching! Ace and Deuce and Grim are staring, too. This is so humiliating and embarrassing, and I think that’s exactly why this man is doing it. I could feel the riding crop press into my skin, the curl of his lips twitching even farther up, his smirk broadening. This jerk was enjoying the effect he was having.

I just… needed to spit it out. Simple as that. “M-Master Crewel.”

There. Phew. I did it.

“Th-Th… Thank you.”

Holy frick, I can’t breathe. This man is slowly killing me with his presence, I swear. I prayed my face wasn’t too red. I had a feeling it was, though, since it felt so damn hot in the room all of a sudden. I do not like this person. Not at all.

“Fufu~ you are most welcome.” He looked so freaking pleased with himself. The man stood up, pulling the riding crop away and turning to look at the rest of the class. “Now, I want you all to look at the tenth item on the list I handed out! It’s properties are-”

He went on to explain each one. Deuce asked if I was okay, seeing me hunched over and on the verge of passing out, my hands gripping the textbooks so tightly my knuckles had turned snow white in color. “F… Fine.” I stammered quietly, voice a little squeaky. “I-I’m… fine.”

Ace narrowed his eyes suspiciously, glancing at the teacher, before he shook his head. “You always say that, but whatever. Hey, I’m gonna be counting on you to help me pass this class, ‘kay?”

“Let’s… f-focus on getting that collar removed first, please.”

Gods, I’m so thirsty. I hoped there was a water fountain in the hallway somewhere so I can get a drink later. I blinked rapidly, struggling to normalize my breathing, hands shaking as I grabbed the list of plants. My brain didn’t want to focus- it _couldn’t_ focus. My concentration was thrown for a total loop after that ambush from Divus.

Freaking jerk- he totally knows how attractive he is. Why else would he carry around a stupid riding crop in place of a teacher pointer and mess with me like this? Ugh.

More time passed and eventually we all had to remove our coats, gloves, and goggles. I wasted no time in bolting out of the classroom, power-walking as fast as my short legs would let me, and Grim was so very confused. Ace was totally suspicious of my behavior, probably having already figured out the reason for it, while Deuce remained completely oblivious and unaware.

To my relief there were water fountains nearby and I took a drink from one, slightly more refreshed, and when Grim complained about himself being thirsty I held him up to the fountain. Afterwards I followed the boys to the Magic History classroom- a lesson I hoped would be interesting.

The teacher was the same person that had been speaking with Headmaster Crowley and Divus in the office before. Mozus Trein. He even had his familiar Lucius in his arms. Sitting between the boys once more with Grim back in my lap, I tried to listen to the older man speak.

“In this class you will be learning about the history of magic that has brought prosperity to the world…”

“Mrrrooow~!”

But his cat kept interrupting.

“Participation in class will affect your grades, not just reports. And I do _not_ forgive sleeping in class.”

And him drawling on with that dull voice is going to make staying awake very hard.

My exhaustion was starting to come back at full force, reminding me that I had been awake since about midnight. Sitting around doing nothing wasn’t exactly helping either. I propped my chin up, zoning out and mostly listening to Lucius meow. That cat sounded more like a grumbling stomach than an actual feline. He did look super fluffy though.

I really… want to pet him. Big long-haired cats are the best. I mostly preferred older ones, though, as they were pretty calm. They mostly just lazed about all day and let you love on them. Lucius seemed like that kind of cat- minus his judging stare.

I yawned as quietly as I could and leaned back in my seat, holding a tired Grim up to my chest, scratching behind his ears and cradling him like I did most cats. Mozus Trein continued, “Open your textbooks to page fifteen… We will start with the discovery of magic crystals in the Dwarfs’ Mines.”

“MrrooooOOOOOooow.”

“A century after this discovery, magical energy began to spread throughout the world. We call this “The Beginning of Magic”.”

Ace shared similar sentiments to me and my cat monster companion, though he yawned a lot louder than we did. Deuce, on the other hand, was listening intently- repeating everything that was said, including Lucius’ meows. It was honestly sort of adorable; he was trying so hard. I really wanted to pat him on the head. Deuce was such a good boy, I swear. He needed to be protected.

Grim grumbled as Trein went on and on about the beginnings of magic, tucking his ears back and leaning into my touch as I continued to pet him. “I want to use magic and make things go _bang._ This is so boring.”

And it was. Class was really boring.

I thought it was going to be interesting, but the teacher spoke like a slow drone and it just made me doze off. Several times Deuce had to shake me awake before Mozus noticed and when Ace started to fall asleep I had to be the one to pinch him. I really was never going to forgive the headmaster for making me take part in class like this, especially since I didn’t even really agree to it. The only upside was that he actually got me books.

“Class is dismissed.” Mozus said after the school bell finally rang. “Don’t forget to study pages fifteen through twenty-five for tomorrow’s lesson…”

I stretched my arms out once we were in the hallway and yawned, Ace leaning back and popping his neck as best as he could with that collar on. I stumbled and blinked, eyes watery, and I yawned again- only to break out into a couple of coughs. “So,” I asked, turning to look at the boys, placing my hands on my hips, “what’s next?”

Grim blinked, furrowing his brows. “I think it’s gym class.”

I balked.

Ace started laughing, figuring out the reason for my reaction almost immediately. “You’re screwed! Ahaha~ you can’t even run like a normal person, can you?”

I brought a hand up to my face, cringing as I feared what was going to happen. I brushed my bangs back, worrying my bottom lip as I thought of all the possible scenarios. _Yeah, no._ There was no good ending. If the teacher wasn’t understanding then I was going to be, as Ace had claimed, totally screwed. Maybe I could use Grim as an excuse- convince the teacher that this was a class I was unable to take and so the cat monster had to do all the work?

The gymnastics class here was technically part of the magic course, wasn’t it? So I should be able to get out of it. Maybe.

Ugh, I don’t even have a uniform! Where am I supposed to put my books? I sighed, leaning my forehead against the lockers as I waited for Ace and Deuce to finish putting their things away. I dragged my feet as we walked to the gym area outside, where uniforms and locks were starting to be distributed. And while Grim and I did get a lock to share, there were _no_ female changing rooms. Only the men’s locker room.

_I hate my life._

To make matters worse every uniform was designed for each specific student, class year and number included. The teacher himself was also a burly mass of muscle, so I knew right away there was no getting through to him. His name was apparently Ashton Vargas? He was… sort of scary. Not in the Divus kind of way, but in the way that I knew he could break every bone I had with just a pinky finger if I made him angry. I sighed, looking down at my dress, wondering if I was really going to have to participate like this.

“Oi, El!”

Huh?

I turned, confused, hearing my name get called. Next thing I knew my vision was being obscured and I yelped, stumbling back and throwing my hands up, trying to escape the fabric that was trapping me. Familiar laughter reached my ears and I shrieked, tripping over my feet and falling back onto my rear. I coughed, still struggling to get out from under fabric trap, when suddenly a pair of hands took it off of me.

Deuce.

He was trying very hard to hide a laugh, while Ace was in the background snickering up a storm. The ginger was the one who had thrown the thing. Deuce extended a hand out to me, smiling. “Here. Heh… you really are quite clumsy, aren’t you?” I scrunched my nose at him, taking his hand and standing, wheezing a little.

“J-Just a little bit.” I cleared my throat, furrowing my brows and taking the cloth Deuce was holding. “Thanks. Um, what is… this?”

“Your uniform.”

“...Hah?” I unfolded the fabric, surprised to see it was black jumpsuit almost identical to the others. Tucked inside was a turquoise-colored t-shirt. “Was this in the box with the others? How do you know it’s-? Oh.” It had my grade and student number on it. It lacked any fancy coloring the rest of the dorm uniforms had, only signifying how much plainer and alone it was. My brows furrowed when I pulled out the shirt, finding a note attached to it. “The headmaster went crazy…”

The writing even mentioned that he had spoken to Vargas about my health condition, having gotten lectured by Divus and Mozus, and it said that I should only worry about taking pictures with the ghost camera while Grim did all the work.

“His kindness is through the roof.” I commented, completely deadpan. “My hero.”

Ace snorted. Grim looked less the pleased. “Of course _I’ve_ got to do everything! My henchman is a pathetic mess of a disaster human…”

“Oi! That disaster human was the key to getting you into this school.” I scowled. “Now come on, let’s go…” I faltered, seeing the large trail of students heading into the locker room. I spun on my heel, drawing my lips into a thin line, despair and disgust crawling onto my features. “Let’s not go. Okay. You know what? It’s fine. I’m not even partaking in gym, so why do I need to get changed? Ahaha…”

“This is an all-boys school, so of course there isn’t a girls locker room…” Deuce realized, cheeks flushing pink. “Th-This is bad. Ace, what should we do?”

  
“Eh? Why’re you asking me!?” The ginger actually looked flustered for once. He brought a hand up, ruffling his hair. “This is so lame… um, there might be a shower stall curtain you can hide behind? But there are a lot of guys…”

Never in my life did I think I would get caught up in this sort of situation. I want to crawl in a hole and disappear.

I blinked when a shadow casted in front of me, looking up and nearly jumping when I saw Deuce standing so close. He pressed a fist into his palm, a determined expression on his face. “I’ll protect you!” He declared. “A woman should be allowed to change in peace!”

“I-I think that’s only half the issue here.” Ace said, hand dangling in the air. “She might _see_ some... things.”

Deuce blinked, confused, before his face turned even redder. “Th-Th-Then what do we do!?”

Grim looked back-and-forth between the two boys. “What’s wrong with her entering the locker room? You humans are all the same, right?”

“N-No.” Deuce said, shaking his head fervently. “No, we are not!”

I took that as my chance to bury my face in my new uniform, groaning and resisting the urge to scream in frustration. The headmaster, despite telling Vargus there was no need for me to participate, still went out of his way to make me a uniform. Yet, for the life of him, he didn’t think about where I would change into it!? I’m gonna skin me a bird and roast it for dinner.

And since I’m completely inexperienced in how to cook like that, it’ll be super gruesome and painful! Victory will be mine.

Ace stared for a long moment, eyebrows raising. Then his red eyes flashed. A grin curled onto his face and he stepped forward, planting his hands on my shoulders and making me jump. “Wh-What?” I stammered, startled. “What is it?”

“Do you trust me?”

“Hah?”

“Do. You. Trust me?” He asked.

I thought about it, uncertain and a little scared of what he was planning. Ace did leave me for dead, but then he came back to save me. During that very rescue he wound up taking quite the hit from the ink monster and... I think that said a lot about him, if I’m being honest. He clearly trusted _me_ if last night was any indicator, so yeah. I gave an timid nod, deciding that I did in fact trust him. “Y-Yeah…”

Ace looked pleased. “Good. Then give me that shirt you’re holding.”

“...Are you blindfolding me!?”

He laughed, already moving to stand behind me. “Do you want to be scarred for life by a bunch of dudes?” I hesitated, Ace winning the argument.

Reluctantly letting him blindfold me, Grim took charge of the lock I was holding. I yelped when I felt a small push on my back. This was terrifying. What if I bumped into someone? What if I dropped my books? I don’t want to try and pick my things up only to crash into somebody that’s half-naked. This nightmare kept getting worse and worse. “Ack! Okay, that’s a door. G-Grim? Grim, where’d you go? Deuce!?”

“I’m right here.” Holy frick! Okay, he’s a lot closer than I thought he was. It sounded like he was on my right. “Grim is with me.”

Cool, cool. Alright. Wait, I heard a door opening. Did Deuce just open it for us? Aww, he really is such a gentleman.

“We’re almost there, El.” Ace spoke from behind me, guiding me through what was most definitely the locker room, voices all blending together in the background. A couple were chuckling, some were freaking out about a girl being there, and others just didn’t care. It also smelled a bit like dirty socks and sweat in here, which was disgusting. “There’s a stall- actually, that’s gross, come on over here. Shower curtain it is.”

After a few seconds passed I could feel him untying the blindfold and I blinked, eyes wide and staring at the wall as color came into my vision. Too scared to actually look behind me, I reached a hand out and felt what I think was Ace’s chest. Shoulder… ah- that’s a face.

“Can you stop that?”

“S-Sorry! Um, can… can you get out so I can change, please? Wait! Where’s Grim? Our books need to go in the locker-”

“I’ve got them.” Deuce stepped into my line of vision and took my books, and it was then I came to the conclusion that the shower stall was too small for three people and a cat monster. “We’ll put our lockers near the stalls so we can keep an eye out and make sure no one tries anything.”

“O-Okay. Thank you.”

Ace let out a sigh, stepping out from the shower stall and closing the curtain. “Man, I never thought I’d end up having to work as a freaking bodyguard once I got accepted into college. Lame~!”

“J-Just get changed and keep an eye on the others!”

“I still don’t get it.” Grim commented, sounding farther away. I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding, arms and legs trembling a little as I leaned against the wall. “Humans are weird.”

I seriously need a nap. Or at the very least another relaxing bath.

Not wanting to risk anything, I changed as quickly as I could. It was… troublesome considering the dress was put on magically and I had to figure out if the button-up vest actually came off or not, but after a good minutes I was able to slide on the t-shirt and the jumpsuit. The hem was at my waist, so I kept the top of the suit unzipped and tied the long sleeves at my hips, showing off my skinny has-never-seen-the-sun white arms. The t-shirt color didn’t look half bad on me. Hmm.

Well, regardless, I was fully dressed and safe. Phew.

I picked up my discarded clothes and stepped close to the curtain, calling out, “A-Ace? Deuce? Grim? Are you guys done?”

“Yeah, you?” Ace.

“Y… Yeah. Should I open the curtain or-?”

“Close your eyes.” He said. I did as told and listened as the curtain opened. Next thing I knew there was a hand in front of my face and another on my shoulder. “Okay, let’s go~! Set your clothes there and… good. Alright. Outside is this way. Man, this is gonna be a pain to do every time we have class.”

“S… Sorry…”

I really had no idea what was going on with the magic mirror when it decided to kidnap me. Did it just want to torment someone for giggles? Once we were out of the locker room Ace released me and I blinked, stumbling forward, almost gagging.

“Fresh air!”

There wasn’t much winning. Female lockers rooms had me choking on perfume, while the men’s locker room had me this close to vomiting. I looked at Deuce and Ace, horrified, hand pressed to my chest.

“H-How do you guys _function_ in that stench?”

They looked at each other, then back at me. Ace shrugged. “It’s pretty normal.”

“Middle school was like that, too.” Deuce informed. I stuck my tongue out, vocalizing my disgust. “You’re okay though, right? I didn’t see anyone sneak up on you or anything.”

I shook my head, standing straight. “N-No, I’m fine. Seriously though- thanks, you guys.”

A loud booming voice interrupted the conversation, coming from the teacher himself. “Alright you bean sprouts! Line up!” We all did as ordered, and I was finally able to get a better look at the man.

I could tell he was beefy from earlier, but… wow. I don’t think this man had an ounce of fat on him. He looked like he could be a profession wrestler or boxer, or something of the sort, with how built he was. Even more surprising was the large brown quiff at the top of his head, his hair styled back in a way that made me think he cared greatly for his appearance. He had quite the beard going on, having shaved it to resemble that of an anchor, and some very dark lashes that highlighted his blue eyes.

In my opinion the muscles were a bit much, but he had a handsome face. Sadly, it did little to alleviate my fear of him.

“Becoming a great wizard involves building up your muscles.” Vargas told us, holding his arms out and showing off his ridiculously large biceps. “Take me, for example; I’ve grown _this_ strong by eating raw eggs day-after-day! You baby wizards don’t have any stamina at all! Therefore, I want you to start with twenty laps around the arena! Afterwards, one hundred pushups.”

Um, no thank you.

Ace grimaced, bringing a hand up and scratching the back of his neck, expression becoming more sour when his fingers bumped into the collar he was wearing. “Jeez… is he serious? I don’t dislike exercise, but I can’t deal with this kind of teacher.”

“I can’t even exercise!” I so helpfully added, wearing a faux cheery expression before dropping my face into something more bitter. “Fun fun.”

Deuce grinned wickedly. His normally gentle expression had twisted into something a little more… dark, the teen slamming a fist excitedly into his palm. “I’ve got _plenty_ of confidence in my stamina.” He said, staring down the track field with a determined stare. “This is gonna be fun.”

“What’s so fun about running in circles!?” Grim demanded. “I’m not a hamster! I thought this was supposed to be a magic class? Where’s the flying lessons!?”

I awkwardly raised a hand, determined to avoid straining myself as I knew it would only end in disaster. “E-Excuse me, sir…?”

“Hm? What is it, beansprout?”

“Th-The headmaster… said he told you I couldn’t participate.” I held up the note I had found earlier, praying I wasn’t going to get yelled at for speaking up like this. “Sh-Should I just stand on the sidelines or walk behind everyone else…?”

“Ah, you’re Eleanora Quince, aren’t you?” Vargas hummed, bringing a hand up to his chin. “You don’t look as though you’ve brought the camera he gave you, so you can just stand next to me. Now go, go- the rest of you! Run those laps before I make you do more!”

Deuce was already moving. Ace and Grim, on the other hand, looked just as incredulous as the rest of the class. I sincerely hoped they weren’t actually going to have to do twenty laps and one hundred pushups. Thankfully, as it turns out, they didn’t- as class had ended before they could finish. I disappeared into the locker room before any of the guys could get in there and grabbed my clothes, changed, and rushed out. I almost slammed into a couple students along the way.

Such a pain…

I really hoped every day wasn’t going to be like this. I waited for Ace and Deuce to get changed, Grim on my shoulder, and Deuce handed me my books. He looked like he was in such a better mood after getting to move about like that. After seeing him in action, it was clear he was a bit of a musclehead. No wonder he could carry me and run simultaneously. He was a strong boy.

And Ace, while pretty tough, wasn’t anywhere close to Deuce’s level.

_Suddenly I’m even more glad that it’s these two I met._

They both smelled pretty gross after all that running though. I kept a safe distance away from them. We wandered through the grassy fields back into the school hallway, where Deuce rummaged through his things to find his schedule. Sometime during this Grim had gotten quiet, but I didn’t think much of it. I was too tired. It was taking everything I had to remain awake.

“Let’s see…” Deuce murmured. “...our next class is…”

Hm? Oh, right. How much longer until lunch, anyway? I’m getting hungry again. I yawned loudly, staggering a little, and almost dropped my books as a result.

From beside me Ace also let out a yawn, stretching his arms out and popping his elbows and shoulders. “For a school of magic it really isn’t all that different from regular schools.” The ginger commented, voicing his surprise. “Not having magic hasn’t been all that problematic.”

“Really?” I blinked at him and proceeded to give a lazy smile. “That’s good.”

“Yeah. Hey, what about you, Gri- _.”_

I watched as Ace cut himself off, a strange expression forming on his face. What was with that reaction? Deuce and I both paused, the ginger going completely quiet, and a bad feeling started to settle deep in my gut. “G-Grim?” I turned to look at the shoulder he had been sitting on previously. “Oh no.”

I glanced at the floor by our feet, then brought a hand up to the top of my head. The color started to drain from my face, panic welling up inside of me.

“Oh no, no, no- he didn’t!?”

He totally did. Grim ran away from us. Deuce gasping caught my attention and I whirled around, watching as he hurried over to the paneless window. “Look!” He exclaimed in alarm, and I made my way over just in time to view a blur of black run across the grass. “That furball is dashing through the courtyard!”

The headmaster is not going to be happy.

“G-Grim! Grim, get back here! What are you doing!?” I coughed a little after shouting, flinching and resting a hand against my throat. “Grim!”

He slowed to a halt, ears twitching, and the cat monster turned to look at me. Tail swishing irritably, he growled. “I’m not sitting through anymore of those boring lessons! The Great Grim is a genius; I don’t need those kinds of classes to teach me spells that go _boom_ or _bang!_ I’ll learn my own way!”

I watched with increasing dread as he turned tail and took off, running past some of the apple trees. I could almost _feel_ the life drain from my body, the world slowly crumbling apart around me as my hand lowered to the window ledge. Something bubbled inside me- similar to what I felt on the very first day I arrived to this place.

And that was anger.

Deuce sighed, shaking his head. “The first day of school and he’s already taken off. Grim never learns…”

From the side Ace burst out into laughter. “It’s your first day as supervisor and you already have to report that you lost him! Ahaha! You truly are a disaster.”

I’m going to kill him. I’m going to chase that damn cat monster down and skin him.

“Grim was the one who wanted to go to this school…” I muttered quietly, hands slowly curling into fists. I set my books down on the ledge, voice raising with each word I spoke. Tears were starting to blur my vision, eyes burning as the frustration and rage welled up. “He’s the one who _attacked_ me when I first woke up in this god damn world! And all for a freaking uniform! It’s _his_ fault I couldn’t use my hands before; it’s _his_ fault I’m even a student now! A-And now he’s just gonna run away because he’s _bored!?”_

Face alight with a fury, I grit my teeth. The tears were starting to fall, silent if not for the tremble in my voice.

“I’m gonna make good on my original promise; I’m going to _fucking butcher_ him.”

Ace whistled. “Easy there, tiger. I didn’t think you had it in you to curse like that, haha! Still, it’s not like you can actually chase him, right? You couldn’t even run all those other times.”

My eyes flashed and I looked at the boys with a crazed smile, my tired brain and frightened, frustrated heart done with all this insanity. “Oho~ wanna _bet?”_ I curled my fingers, mimicking a strangling gesture. “It’ll kill me, but I can still do it. That _brat_ will just be going down with me!”

I coughed, lungs a little strained from all the shouting. I don’t know if it was because of the curse or if my asthma still existed even after what that potion did, but my body wasn’t happy with me.

A grin curled onto Ace’s lips. He placed his hands on his hips. “Let’s not have you die just yet, ‘kay? You still have to help me apologize. And speaking of help~ don’t you want some?”

“...Huh?” Confusion momentarily halted me. “Wh-What?”

“Don’t. You. Want. Help. Catching. Grim?” He repeated, though something in his gaze didn’t seem… honest. I knew he was already a bit fed up with helping me so much throughout the day, so why was he offering now? I didn’t trust that look.

I squinted, staring at him suspiciously. “Wh… What do you want?”

His expression brightened. “Buy me a chocolate croissant~!”

Huh?

I was even more surprised when the gentleman known as Deuce smirked, folding his arms across his chest. His other personality was starting to show through again. “Get me an iced latte from the cafeteria and I’ll help you as well.” He told me.

These… These jerks-! I can’t believe this. I was seriously ready to just chase after Grim by myself. 

I had a lot of pent up stress that was just _begging_ to be taken out on the annoying narcissistic cat monster, after all. It would hurt me really badly in the end, but I knew running after him would remove the majority of the frustration and release the tension that had built up in my muscles from all the fear I had been feeling the past few days. It also wasn’t my money I’d be spending, it would be the school's.

Although… the headmaster was being sort of a jerk by making me take classes- especially gym class. I was feeling very petty right now. Their offer of spending more of his money was very tempting.

Urgh… no, no! I can’t. Frick.

“Come on, come on~!” I yelped, feeling Ace sling an arm over my shoulders. “Time is ticking and he’s getting farther away. Yes or no?”

“Th-That’s…”

“Oh, what’s that?” The ginger teased, nearly knocking me over as he started to place the majority of his weight on my back. His collar started to dig into my neck. “I can’t hear you! Are you really okay with Grim getting so far away? The headmaster is going to be super pissed, you know~!”

I growled, glaring at the ground stubbornly for a moment. I really hated this. “Fine. I… I beseech thee…”

Ace laughed and released me, clapping his hands together. “It’s a deal! Now then; shall we clean up after our pathetic little disaster human, _Deuce~_?”

“But of course, _Ace~!”_ Oh gods, these two have never been more in sync. It was a little terrifying seeing them act this way, the boys wearing mischievous grins that were near identical to one another. The blue-haired teen raised a hand to his chin, forefinger tapping against his bottom lip. “I’m looking forward to lunch…”

I sent them both a sour look. “You… You guys are awful. I take back anything nice I ever said about you.”

They merely laughed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so after intense observation I've come to the conclusion that it really IS a teacher pointer Divus has, but I'm committed to keeping it as a riding crop since I wrote about it so many times, haha. Also Grim is a brat. Right when you think he's a good kitty he up and runs away, haha. El is so done. Also the "promise" is from the entrance ceremony when Grim first bit her. And I tried to do some slight foreshadowing in this chapter, though it may have been obvious. XD 
> 
> I love their little "Ace-Kun~" and "Deuce-Kun~" at the end in the game, it's so cute. This chapter is a little shorter than most, so I apologize, but I figured it would help with the flow of the next one. And this is random, but I read this time-travel Crowley theory??? It was so good. Kinda hope that's the case. Just- everyone went horrible and all the students became villains, and so Future!Crowley pulls player from their world into the past, and that's why Crowley doesn't really do anything to help MC??? Because MC is kinda doing such a good job fixing things already??? Or maybe he really is just a lazy headmaster, who knows? XD 
> 
> And holy crap~! How do I have 96 kudos on this story??? You guys are so nice T_T I'm so glad you're enjoying the story. And thank you for the comments! <3 They make my day. And speaking of days, I hope you all have a nice one! Or night, depending on where you are, haha.


	12. Lunchtime Madness

I waited impatiently for the boys to return. This scene felt all too familiar and I berated myself for tricking myself into thinking that the cat monster had actually matured a little since the ink monster incident. Honestly, why did I try and fool myself? Jeez. Maybe with a decent scolding he might shape up and stop being such a little brat…

Hmm. That water fountain is still nearby, right? Maybe I could flick some water into his face. I’ll probably feel guilty about it later, but the pettiness was still strong within me. He needed to behave. It was bad enough that we’ve already gotten into magic duel earlier with that Cater guy, but now we were going to be late for our next class if the boys took any longer to catch Grim. What even _was_ our next class? Deuce wasn’t able to say before our feline companion took off.

I wonder if the headmaster made our classes line up on purpose. I still don’t understand why he made me a freshman. Heck, I don’t understand why he does _anything_. He doesn’t even listen to me- he only hears what he wants to hear.

I sighed, lowering my tired gaze to the floor. “I don’t even know why I bother…” This was all so draining.

While I waited for the boys to return I set their books next to mine on the paneless windowsill, lining them up and trying to keep them as symmetrical as possible. After a minute or two passed I gave up and leaned against the wall, sliding down slowly and sitting on the ground, hands draped in my lap. This nonsense just wasn’t going to end, was it?

One thing after another, havoc and chaos ever our shadow.

I blinked furiously when I felt the sob trying to build its way back up, and I fought it as best as I could, gritting my teeth in the process. What did I even do to deserve all of this? I don’t get it.

I know I wasn’t the greatest person in existence nor was I the most reliable, but… I didn’t think I was the worst either. I followed the law, I did as I was told, and I avoided littering. I tried my best to keep people happy and avoided confrontations, and I worked hard to do things on my own. Nobody really prepared me for adulthood- as soon as I turned eighteen and graduated everyone just expected me to have already have figured out what my life was going to be.

And now… I don’t even know what my life _is._

I choked a little, eyes squeezing tightly shut.

I just… want an explanation. A reason for why this was happening. Who did I make so angry that they’d curse me? Why did the magic mirror “choose” me? What did I do that was so bad to warrant being abducted and put through so much hell? If I knew that, then… maybe I could accept it. Just a little bit.

Gods…

I leaned my head back, inhaling shakily with a sniffle, my fingers curling into fists and clutching at the fabric of my dress. “I-I need a hug.” There was nothing I wouldn’t give to be able to see my siblings again. It was so hard trying to keep myself together and it really didn’t seem to be working. I was a mess.

An emotional wreck.

“Hmm~? My, my; you look troubled…”

I jumped at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, head snapping up to see who was talking. To my alarm it was a _very_ tall man, with pale skin and neatly brushed teal hair. There was a long black streak of hair on the left side of his face reaching down to just below his chin, and he had a pair of very sharp heterochromic eyes. While his right was a dark olive, his left was a bright yellow, and a diamond-shaped earring dangled from his left ear. Overall, this person was very pretty.

He seemed quite polite as well, though that smile of his… unnerved me. I tensed when the man stepped closer, watching as he knelt down before me so we were on even speaking ground. “You’re the girl that the school wrongly collected, are you not? That attire you are wearing- could it be you were made a student after all?”

“...Y-Yeah…” Who is this person? What does he want? I hurriedly cleared my throat, blinking a couple times and turning away, trying to figure out an escape from this situation. “Um, hi. Wh-Who are you?”

“Hm?” He looked surprised, before he chuckled and pressed a hand to his chest. “My apologies. My name is Jade Leech. You are… Eleanora Quince, correct? Oh- please do not be startled. Rumors of you have already started spreading around. It’s not everyday a girl joins an all boys school, after all.”

Yeah, he’s definitely setting off several warning bells. I need to get out of here. How can I collect the books and take off without seeming suspicious or rude? Ace, Deuce, please hurry up. I’m scared. I gave a weak laugh at the man’s words, sitting up a little straighter and repositioning my legs just slightly so to try and make it seem like my behavior was natural, attempting to get ready to stand.

“T-True… the, uh, headmaster just kinda threw me in here like “oh, problem solved” so… I’m here! Haha.”

Jade hummed. “As the magicless human you are… that must be very problematic.”

“Huh?” I blinked. “O-Oh, um, not really? It’s… fine.”

“Then… might I ask what _is_ troubling you?” He inquired, voice ever-so-gentle. “I know someone you can go to for help. He is quite excellent in all that he does.”

Oh boy. This conversation is winding up into dangerous territory. I have a bad feeling about all of this. If I didn’t turn him away now I was going to get dragged into something unsavory; I can feel it. Slowly rising to my feet I flashed the man a bright grin, my palms pressed against the wall behind me. I ignored how this person was towering over me with his six-foot-two height and instead slid my feet sideways, moving closer to the books I had stacked next to each other.

“I-I’m okay, thanks.” I said, shoving all my negative thoughts and emotions away, channeling as much cheeriness as I could. “Sorry. I-I just, uh, don’t think anyone can really… um… help with my… situation…”

I really didn’t want to tell this person what was bothering me. I could be wrong and was judging merely because of how on edge I was since coming to this world, but letting him know I was basically an alien felt like the wrong move. The look in his heterochromic eyes freaked me out greatly.

“Now, now; don’t say such things…” The warning bells in my head grew louder when he reached forward, gloved fingers brushing away a stray tear that was on my cheek. I inhaled sharply, very much alarmed. He had me trapped against the wall at this point, like I was some sort of cornered mouse, and I could feel my heart bodyslamming my ribcage- breathing becoming uneven quick. “You’ll never know if you don’t try. And Azul is _very_ good at making dreams come true.”

Is… Is his teeth the same as the headmaster’s? Eughhh! No, no, no! I may be the alien here, but these people are aliens to me! Aghhhh, that’s terrifying! He feels like some kind of mythological monster. A pretty face and gentle voice meant to lure in their victims, and when they’re in reach… they eat them.

Like a siren! Oh gods.

That’s totally what this is right now, isn’t it? Jade is playing nice right now, but I bet as soon as I go to meet this Azul person, then- “Wait, _Azul?_ The pretty octopus guy from the ceremony?” My brain came to an abrupt halt, realization dawning on me fast. The man looked startled.

“Ah… y-yes. You already know of him?”

“Not really?” I answered, momentarily distracted by the memory as I tried to recall what all happened with him. “He… He caught… Grim and… Leona threatened him… oh!” I snapped to attention, bringing my arms out from behind my back and clapping my hands together, face brightening. Jade had pulled away slightly, clearly surprised by my change of behavior. “He said he made a potion to give himself legs! Is that true!? Is he really an octopus mermaid? Man. Merman?”

Wait. My eyebrows furrowed and I tried to think.

“I’m confused. Either way, that’s really cool!” I looked back up at Jade, swinging my hands excitedly through the air. “Are there other mermen here!? Are they also octopuses? Er, octopi? I don’t know words. Anyway! There’s-”

Too much. Too much talking. My rambling was brought to an abrupt halt as I broke out into several harsh coughs, an arm raising up to cover my mouth quickly. I flinched, wheezing, pressing my other hand to my chest.

“S-Sorry…”

Frick. My brain suddenly decided now was the perfect time to have me disappear, because I whirled around and looked out the window to see that Ace and Deuce were currently bickering with Grim in the courtyard- the cat monster crushed underneath a cauldron. I had been so wrapped up in my conversation with Jade that I didn’t hear them at all.

“Gah! Th-The guys! I-I gotta go, sorry!”

I scrambled past Jade and stacked up the books, struggling to hold them all without tumbling over, and I flashed him an awkward smile.

“Nice meeting you! Bye-bye~!”

He blinked, watching as I wandered off into the courtyard. I power-walked, nearly toppling over from the weight of the books. I knew my arm strength was practically nonexistent, but _dang._ Carrying such heavy objects was also starting to… kinda… wear me out. It was a good thing it was only a short walk. Deuce saw me approaching and took the books, looking mildly concerned when he saw me hunch over and fail to catch my breath.

Ace was currently bullying Grim, mocking him and calling him a “pancake” after getting squished the way he did. “This is what you get! Now stop complaining and go back to El already! We won’t let you skip out on lessons.”

“Nooo~! No way! I don’t wanna go back to such boring classes!”   
  


“Shut up!” Ace snapped. He pulled the cat monster out form under the cauldron, holding him by the scruff. The ginger jumped when he saw me and walked over- holding Grim out to me. “Here! We got him. You better not back out of our deal.”

“A-As if I would!” I defended, mildly offended by the assumption. “Rude. I keep my promises.”

I wasn’t the one who tried to skip out on detention, sir. I took the cat monster from Ace and held him close to my chest, wrapping my arms firmly around him to keep him from running again. I glared down at Grim, irritable.

“And _you!_ Do you… really have to act like this?”

“Fnnaaagh! I’ll roast you!”

“Try it and I’ll cut you.” I threatened.

Ace snorted. Deuce didn’t seem as surprised as he was when I let loose the f-bomb earlier, the boy now instead trying to hide the grin struggling to form on his lips. It seems they were starting to accept the personality switch _I_ got when I was angry. Normally when mad I would remain quiet and simply stare the person down, but when pushed to it I could become like a storm- raging and fierce, and beyond reckless.

“I am _not_ playing your stupid games.”

“Geh-!” Grim’s blue eyes went wide. He then growled, not at all pleased with the current situation. “Why are you being so strict all of a sudden!? You were so nice earlier.”

“I wouldn’t _have_ to be strict if you just listened!”

I fixed the way I was holding him, keeping the cat monster in place, and I promptly positioned my fingers in front of his face and flicked him. He wailed, nose scrunching up, and he hissed at me. Grim attempted to bite me, but a quick bop on the muzzle had his ears curling back. I was seriously going to have to start bringing a tiny spray bottle around with me and keep it filled with water, because I was _fed up._ I despised brats.

“You were the one… who wanted to go to this school!” I reminded him sternly, voice a bit breathy. My eyes bore into his own, intense. He looked somewhat frightened now, if not guilty, but I tried not to think too much about it. I knew he didn’t actually regret his actions. If he did feel any guilt at all for what he did to me then he wouldn’t have ran off like this. “You attacked me… just so you could get a uniform!”

I coughed lightly into my shoulder, wincing, before continuing. Ace and Deuce were staring in silence, letting me dish out my anger on this cat monster.

“You can’t… just skip out on your classes! Call yourself a “genius” all you want… but there is _no way_ you can become any kind of mage… if you don’t go to school! You got that? So… behave or… I’ll convince the headmaster… to un-enroll me.”

“Wh-What!?” He was alarmed. “But if you do that I’ll get kicked out!”

My expression hardened. “Exactly.”

He clicked his tongue and huffed, turning his head away. “I hate you when you’re like this!”

I spoke sickeningly sweet after hearing that. “Aww~ I hate you too, sweetheart. I’m so glad we could reach an understanding! Now why don’t we grab our things and head to our next class, ‘kay?”

“Actually,” Deuce finally spoke up, awkwardly speaking through all the tension, “it’s lunch right now. The bell rang for it about three minutes ago…” Wait. Were the warning bells in my brain that were going off actually the school bell ringing!? Oh my gods. I’m going insane. I’m hallucinating everything. “E-Eleanora?”

I hung my head, effectively drained. “I give up. I want to go home…”

Ace and Deuce looked at each other. I sighed, looking at Grim again- anger gone and instead replaced with something more solemn. The cat monster blinked when I spoke in a softer, quieter voice, my eyes half-lidded.

  
“Treat people how you want to be treated, okay, Grim? If you want me to be nice.... behave.”

I coughed into my shoulder again, dizzy, head pounding. I really don’t feel good. The cat monster grimaced, his tail flicking in annoyance. “You’re too serious…” He grumbled.

“And _you’re_ too carefree!” Ace scolded, walking over and bopping the cat upside the head. Grim hissed. “Now come on; I’m starving! Man,” He shook his head, exhausted, “first dinner and now breakfast… I feel like I’m gonna pass out. I need food.”

Deuce nodded in agreement. “All the good meals are gonna be taken if we don’t hurry. We’ll have to run.”

I grimaced. “Mother of- _whoa!_ Okay.” I blinked, startled, unable to finish my previous sentence.

Deuce had handed Ace all the books and swept me up off my feet, causing me to yelp, and now the boys were taking off to their lockers to throw all the books in there, including my own. I was starting to question what the heck my role was in this weird little group we had, as it honestly felt like they were doing the majority of the work when it came to battling and catching Grim.

_I only ever get carried around like this…_

It’s a little embarrassing. I always wanted to be carried like a princess, but not like this. It just further drove in the fact that I was useless. Considering how he’s always running with me in his arms, I’m a little surprised Deuce didn’t demand I get more than just a latte for him from the cafeteria. He was a bit of a musclehead, if gym class was any sign of that, so maybe he thinks of it as exercise?

Hopefully. I don’t want to hear Crowley yelling at me later for spending so much money.

“It’s finally lunch time!” Grim exclaimed, annoyance vanishing as we approached the cafeteria. He had climbed onto my shoulder when Deuce was setting me back onto my feet. Several people gave us weird looks- though I couldn’t really blame them. It wasn’t everyday people marched into the mess hall carrying another in their arms. “Ahhh~! I can’t wait! I’m starving! Everything looks so good!”

My stomach grumbled and I winced, feeling some of the nausea coming back when the scent of all the meals hit me. I rested a hand on my stomach. “I still can’t believe they have a whole freaking buffet… gods, it smells so good~!” I made a face, almost whimpering at the thought of how delicious everything was going to taste.

“Did you not have them at your old school?” Deuce asked, curious.

“Nope! It was mostly just a “hey, you got two choices for the day, pick one”. The pizza was basically cardboard- I actually found a piece of tape attached to one once- and after I stopped eating at school my mom got upset and packed me lunches.”

She was not happy when she found out. I didn’t expect her to show up the next morning with a bunch of groceries in arms telling me she bought a lunchbox. I… I miss her. A lot.

I blinked quickly, forcing the tears away, and plastered a smile on my face. I laughed, grabbing two trays from the pile and handing the boys their own. “Her cooking was the best.”

Deuce smiled a little at that, something warm in his expression. “I can imagine. Moms are like that.” His expression became a little more sad. “Mine is… always worrying about me.”

I sort of figured it out already, but this dude really loves his mother. That’s so sweet. “They… tend to do that. Back home I had _two_ moms freaking out over me.” My voice almost cracked when I tried speaking about them. This conversation was really making me think about my family and the homesickness was hitting me hard. “My step-mom… really had it rough. She was… always stressing out over me and my dad because of our health.”

I want… I want to go back. I want to see them again. My grip on the tray tightened and I hurriedly glanced over at the buffet, following behind Ace and trying to distract myself by figuring out what I wanted to eat. Everything looked so good!

Ace grimaced at us, making a face. “Are you guys seriously talking about your moms in the middle of the lunch line? Jeez, I thought El was the only sappy one!”

“Don’t you miss yours?” Deuce inquired, frowning. Ace’s cheeks turned a bit pink and he scowled.

“A-As if! I’m not some kid! Just get your food so we can sit down!”

I leaned towards Deuce, whispering, “He totally misses his mom.” The teen tried to muffle a laugh. Ace glared, but I just smiled brightly at him and waggled my fingers in a goofy wave. “Hello~! I guess I de- _Deuce-_ d that wrong, huh? Man, I totally thought I _Ace_ ’d that observation. ...Pfft!”

The ginger rolled his eyes, deciding to just ignore me and focus on getting the rest of his meal. The blue-haired teen behind me took a bit longer to get my joke and shook his head once he understood it, acting disappointed even though there was a smile clear on his lips. “You’re really terrible, Eleanora.”

“Heehee~! I know.”

I grabbed some sweet rice and corn-on-the-cobs, and proceeded to add on buttered rolls, brisket, and some delicious macaroni-and-cheese. Oooh, I can’t wait to start munching on all of this. There’s still more down the line! I need to get Grim’s part, too. He was being super indecisive. When I looked, I was startled to see the cat monster was salivating from atop my shoulder, his blue eyes full of greed.

“Super fluffy omelettes… grilled chicken… bacon egg tarts! _I_ _want them all!_ ”

I ducked my head down, cringing as my ears began to ring. Ace was in a similar state, the ginger letting out a startled shout. “You’re too loud!” He complained. “Why are you only this excited during lunch!?”

Grim either wasn’t listening or just didn’t care. He pointed a paw at one of the meat sections. “That one! I want that grilled chicken! It’s the last one, so hurry!”

It was very hard trying to balance my tray on my left arm while keeping Grim’s set on palm. This cat monster was a freaking menace to society, I swear. Still- I did as told and tried to grab the food he wanted. After nearly falling over, Deuce, bless his soul, decided to help and stack the food on the tray for me so I wouldn’t topple over and drop everything.

“And the jelly toast! Just- everything, okay!? Just grab it all!”

Deuce shook his head. “You really like to push her around, don’t you?”

“Tell me about it.” I said, raising my eyebrows. “Thanks, Deu- _guh!”_

Something hard rammed into my shoulder and I stumbled, nearly crashing into Ace. The ginger yelped and whirled around, opening his mouth to say something, but cut himself off as we all found ourselves staring at two burly teenagers- both wearing the Heartslabyul uniform. “Oi, oi; watch it, girly! You just broke the egg in my pasta!”

“H-Hah?” I was alarmed. I gripped tight to the trays in my hand, taking a small step back closer to the buffet. Grim’s claws started to dig into my shoulder. “I… I did?”

I didn’t think I was in anyone’s way. Did I step a bit too far out of the line without noticing?

The second teen glared, though there was a wicked grin on his face. “Whoa~ seriously? Breaking the gooey egg on top is the best part of eating carbonara!” He stepped forward, raising his voice, shouting so loud almost the entire cafeteria could hear him. “How do you intend to pay for this!?Haaaah!?”

“Th-That’s-”

The man handed his tray to his friend and I flinched when he reached out and grabbed onto my bicep, squeezing it tightly. The first teen grinned down at me. “Give us that grilled chicken. Actually, why not just hand over the whole tray? We don’t want to damage that pretty little face of yours, do we?” He was squeezing my arm so tight it was going to leave bruises.

I wanted to pull away, to try anything that would get him to let go, but if I did that then all the food I was holding would be sent flying. I didn’t want to waste any of it. Frick. What do I do? I’ve dealt with bullies before, but they were all verbal abusers. I mean, there was that one person who stole my gym uniform and shredded it, and I still never figured out who did it, but none of them actually went out of their way to physically hurt me. They were all just petty girls who hated how annoying I was.

This… was different. I couldn’t just sass and talk my way out of getting beat up.

What should I do?

“I-It’s literally just an egg.” I found myself stammering, panic rising. “The pasta is still edible. I-It’s not like it fell to the floor or anything.”

“Yeah! Besides, that’s my chicken!” Grim snapped. “Get your own!”

It wasn’t that different in that I had to defend myself, the cat monster not really helping matters, though I do wish everyone in the line wasn’t just _staring_ and watching this go down. Even Ace and Deuce were like deer-in-the-headlights. The grip on my arm tightened and I hid a wince, refusing to show pain. Fear is what these jerks wanted; I wasn’t going to give it to them.

“Besides, you were the one who bumped into me! So, like… if anything you guys should be the ones apologizing.” My arms were getting super tired holding these trays. “What are you guys compensating for, anyway? Where do you get off threatening others? Who hurt you?”

Ow, ow, ow-! I made him angry! I made him angry!

My jaw tightened, expression blank, my arm screaming at me as the circulation got cut off by how hard he was gripping my arm. This dude seriously looked like he was about to clock me in the face! I’ve never been punched in the face before, so that’ll be an interesting experience, but I didn’t exactly want it to happen.

“Haaah? What’s with those attitudes!?” I yelped when his fingers shot out to wrap around my throat, but before he could so much as touch me a familiar hand appeared to catch his fist, Deuce standing in front of me with cold eyes. The man yanked his hand free and stepped back, glaring. “How _dare you-!_ We’ll show you what happens when you disrespect your elders!”

“I’ll have you know Eleanora is older than you.” Deuce growled. “You’re the one being disrespectful. Fighting on school grounds and settling personal squabbles with magic is prohibited! Are you trying to get into trouble?”

I stood there in shock, breathing heavily, eyes wide as I tried to process what just happened. What even _is_ happening? A palm on the top of my head had me stumbling, my back hitting Ace’s chest as he glared at the other students. “Assholes…”

I’m… so confused.

We weren’t in a life-and-death situation. There was no evil ink monster.

I hadn’t even been able to get them the desserts they wanted yet.

Why are they helping me? They even set their trays on top of the buffet case so they had more maneuverability.

“You call this a squabble?” The second teen demanded. “We’re just trying to show you underclassman how to respect your seniors! Why I oughta- _grit your teeth,_ freshman!”

“You really don’t wanna do this.” Deuce growled. Compared to before in gymnastics, it almost looked like his muscles were tense- not to prepare himself for movement, but almost as if he were restraining himself. His voice was low and cold, a promise of danger lying in its undertone. It was a little frightening. “Just back away and forget this happened.”

“Yeah!” Grim piped up, leaping onto Deuce’s shoulder boldly. “Or else I’ll roast ya!”

“Why you little-!”

I flinched, terrified of a fistfight happening, but before it could happen… a suave voice rang out, stopping the two teens in their tracks.

 _“What_ are you little puppies doing?” Everyone whirled around to see Divus Crewel approaching, his beautiful face twisting into something harsh. “You all better not be about to fight. That’s grounds for detention…”

“N-No!” The first teen stammered, taking a step back, pulling his fist away. “Y-You see, there was… um… that girl bumped into us! She nearly knocked me over!”

The man hummed, turning his gaze over to me, observing the way my shaking hands were holding onto the trays and how Ace had his hand on my head to try and calm me down. He then looked at Grim and Deuce, noting how they were standing in front of us almost protectively. His grey eyes narrowed at the bullies. “Is that so?”

“Yeah!” The second teen exclaimed. “She started saying some real mean things, too! Her friend here was about to beat us up!”

“Was he now?” Divus stepped forward, a smile twisting onto his lips, his gloved hands reaching over and grabbing at their ears. The boys cried out, feeling him tug roughly on them. The teacher was furious and you could tell it in his eyes. “You _mutts_ are dreadful liars. To think it’s only day one and you’re already harassing the little girl pup!Forget about lunch; rebellious dogs such as yourselves deserve to get punished! You’re coming with me!”

“W-Wait-! I missed breakfast, don’t make me starve!”

“Please, anything but that-!”

Another tug on their ears had them whimpering, the trays in the second teen’s hands being lifted into the air magically and set down on a table. We watched as Divus Crewel strolled away, dragging the delinquents behind him, his long fur coat swaying with each step he took.

Oh my gods. I have no idea what he was going to do to them and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to find out. Wow.

Ace whistled, his arms sliding around my shoulders causing me to jump. His collar was a centimeter away from bumping into the side of my head. “That was lucky. Good thing the teachers patrol around the school during breaks, huh?”

Grim laughed. “Those guys were all talk!”

“Anyway, lets eat.” Ace said with a sigh, tilting his head and closing his eyes. I blinked, looking up at him, still in shock. He had yet to let go. “I’m starving~!”

Deuce slumped over, exhausted. “Master Crewel showing up _was_ lucky, but we’ve done nothing but get into trouble left-and-right since coming here. Either Eleanora’s disaster human luck is contagious or we’re all just unfortunate.” He folded an arm over his chest, pressing a hand to his forehead. “To think so many people try to get into this prestigious academy, but they let in guys like that… honestly!”

A moment of silence.

Deuce jolted, eyes wide. “W-We’re holding up the line! Let’s go.”

“Y-Yeah…” The intimidating teacher just saved us. “Um… _oh!_ Oh, right. Food. Okay.”

I snapped out of my stupor, Ace releasing me and letting me get the rest of Grim’s food. Once we were all done we headed over to an empty table in the corner, sitting down. I sunk into the bench, shoulders slumping as I let out a heavy sigh.

“That was scary…”

Deuce stared at me. He turned away, picking at his pasta with his fork, almost seeming guilty about something. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not _your_ fault.” I said, closing my eyes and resting my head on his shoulder. It was mostly to let him know it was okay and that I didn’t blame him, but it was also due to the fact that the part of me that required physical contact to remain sane was starving. Deuce paused for a moment, startled, before relaxing. Unlike Ace, who was apparently as touchy-feely as I was, Deuce was not used to such contact. In all honestly I could probably fall asleep like this. “I’m surprised you even helped. Thanks. Gah- almost forgot! Your guys’ desserts!” I sat back up.

Ace grinned when he saw his chocolate croissant and wasted no time in violently ruffling my hair, almost shoving my face into my tray of food in the process. “Haha~! Hell yeah! Treat me like this everyday and I won’t mind being a bodyguard.” He scooped up a mouthful and chewed, looking absolutely delighted.

“Thank you.” Deuce said, taking his iced latte with a small smile. “This looks delicious.”

“Agghhh, this is all so yummy!” Grim cheered, shoving his face full of his rice omelette. Omurice, I think it was called? I wasn’t quite sure. “The egg is light and fluffy, and the center is so gooey with cheese!”

I chuckled, picking up my fork and digging into the brisket and barbeque sauce. “Mmm~!” I chewed and swallowed, pressing a hand to my cheek blissfully. “It’s so good.”

“Oh, by the way,” Grim began, mouth full of grilled chicken, looking at the boys sitting across from him, “what are the other dorms like? We saw yours, but…”

Ace and Deuce opened their mouths to speak, but the voices that came out wasn’t theirs. In fact, their lips weren’t even moving yet by the time the words were spoken. “You guys know about the Great Seven statues on Main Street, right? The dorms are all based off of them.” Looking up we saw a familiar face standing behind Grim, a tray of food in his hands and a stranger right beside him.

Ace choked. “Geh-! You’re the guy from this morning!”

“You tricked us into painting those roses for you!” Grim hissed.

Cater chuckled, setting his tray down to the left of the cat monster, sitting across from Deuce. “Saying I tricked you guys is so mean~! It wasn’t like I was painting because I wanted to, you know. It’s just how things are done in the dorm.”

“Then why were you smiling the entire time?” Deuce demanded.

“Now, now, Deucy!” Cater laughed, waving a hand at him. “No need to be so harsh. We’re outside the Heartslabyul dorm, so there aren’t any super strict rules for me to follow! Right now I’m just your kind upperclassman!”

“Somehow I doubt that.” I muttered, pretending not to notice the way his green eyes drifted over to me. Deuce’s face flared red with embarrassment.

“D-Don’t call me “Deucy”! It’s Deuce!”

The man that had been standing beside Cater chuckled, also setting his tray down. He sat across from Ace. “That’s just how he shows affection.”

“Who are you?” The collar-wearing ginger asked, confused. “I don’t recognize you.”

“Hm?” He blinked, smiling apologetically. “My bad. I’m Trey. Trey Clover.”

This person was also quite attractive. What is with all the pretty boys in this god dang school? He had smart gold eyes and well-kempt forest green hair. He wore a pair of large black-rimmed glasses, only adding further to his charm, and he had a small black-colored clover painted on his cheek. My eyebrows furrowed upon seeing that, and I glanced between the other three Heartslabyul boys at the table. They all had a card suit painted on their face.

“I’m a third-year like Cater.” Trey continued. I almost jumped when I saw the man was looking at me. “You’re the new freshman that was put in charge of that rundown piece of- _ahem._ ” He cleared his throat, probably to stop himself from saying anything rude. “I mean, that is to say... the unused dorm?”

“Unfortunately.” I flashed a lazy grin, wiggling my fingers in greeting, deciding not to call him out on his “almost” poor choice of words. Trey chuckled. “Nice to meet you.”

“It’s a pleasure. I’ve heard all about you from Cater and Riddle.” Trey said, still smiling at me. I was starting to feel a little awkward, not used to being the center of attention. “I’m really sorry about all the trouble these guys from our dorm have caused you. It must be hard on you.”

“Deuce and I are sitting right here.” Ace grumbled. I looked up at him with big eyes and then back at Trey.

“I-It’s okay! Um, they’ve actually been… kinda nice, so…”

“Oh?” The green-haired man looked surprised at that. He laughed. “That’s a relief, then! I was quite worried when I heard that the headmaster made the magicless girl the mirror summoned into a student. I wasn’t sure how you’d fare in a school like this.”

“I mean…” I paused, making a face. It would be best not to mention my mood swings. “It’s... been an experience?”

“I can imagine.” Trey looked sympathetic. “If you ever need help with anything, let us know, alright? Some guys can’t be trusted, so if anyone bothers you... come to Heartslabyul. We’ll keep you safe.”

“Yeah!” Cater nodded, standing and leaning over with a grin, holding a finger up in the air. “Not even our strict dorm leader would turn a frightened girl away! Just come running, ‘kay?”

I’m not _that_ defenseless, but in a school full of burly guys who can use magic…

Yeah, no. If those delinquents were any kind of example then I really do need the extra protection. I grabbed a butter roll from my tray, fiddling with it and tearing off a small piece. “O-Okay. Though I can’t promise I’ll actually be _running_. I don’t exactly have a working set of lungs.” 

They blinked.

“Asthma.” I explained and smiled at them. “But thank you! I’ll… I’ll kept that in mind.”

The grin on Cater’s face broadened and he reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone. “Then let’s exchange numbers! Us guys are all in the same dorm and we’re all gonna be friends with you anyway! If we do this and something happens you can just message us your location. Smart, right?”

“Y-Yeah, but…” He tilted his head, confused. I tried not to too feel like too horrible a person. “I-I don’t have my phone. When the mirror grabbed me, it… left everything else behind.”

“Ehhh!?” Cater’s eyes went wide. “No phone!? Seriously? That’s super rare! You really are like some kind of endangered species, aren’t you?”

“I-I wouldn’t call it _that_.” I keep meeting the weirdest people in this place, I swear. “It’s just… bad luck, I guess.”

Cater smiled, eyes flashing mischievously. “Hmm~ then why don’t I introduce you to the shops in town? I know this place that sells newer phone models for super cheap prices! We could go on a date!”

I almost choked on the roll I was eating. There was no way he was actually being serious, right? So why were both Deuce and Ace standing up, looking like they were about to give him the freaking shovel talk? I stared with wide eyes, wondering what they were thinking, but before anything could be said or done Trey spoke up- telling the duo to calm down and coaxing them back into their seats. Trey then turned to Cater, scolding him.

“Can’t you see she’s uncomfortable? Now isn’t the time.”

“Sorry~!” Cater apologized, though the way it sounded didn’t seem genuine. I watched as he sat back down, my brows furrowing as I tried to figure out if he meant it or not. It was hard to tell with that kind of personality. “Um, what were we talking about again? The dorms? Alright, alright; sounds good! It’s a super fresh convo~!”

He winked at me and I tensed, slowly inching closer to Deuce as if to try and hide behind him.

“We’ll tell you anything you want to know!”

“How about we just start with our own dorm?” Ace interjected, frowning at the opposing ginger after taking another bite of dessert. “The hell is up with that crazy Queen of Hearts law?”

Trey grabbed his utensils, starting to eat the meal resting before him. “I suppose you would be curious about that. You guys know about the statue legends, right? And how the Queen of Hearts created a wonderland of madness built on strict adherence to her rules? Heartslabyul is centered around that.”

“And out of respect for the Queen of Hearts,” Cater continued, twirling some ramen onto a fork, “those of us in that dorm wear traditional black-and-red armbands to match her dress. We also uphold the laws that she made to honor her reign as Queen.”

“Thounds annoying.” Grim commented, stuffing his mouth full of food. “You guyth muth have a vewy wough life.”

I made a face at the cat monster, sitting right across from him and getting a clear view of the chewed omurice on his tongue. “Please cover your mouth.”

“Hah?”

I sighed, shaking my head and propping my elbow up on the table. I had such a migraine. “No one wants to see that, Grim. It’s gross.” The cat monster swallowed his food, frowning.

“The hell are you talking about?”

“If you’re going to talk with your mouth full, cover your mouth. Otherwise chew with your mouth shut.”

Cater laughed at that. “Haha~ and I thought Trey was the mom friend!”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?” The green-haired man in question asked, but he didn’t seem too offended. He pushed his glasses up, wearing a smirk. “It’s not bad to have proper table etiquette. Besides, I have several younger siblings; what did you expect from me? I think it’s good we now have someone else here to lecture others on their manners.”

Oh. I could feel my face warm a little when Trey smiled at me. The people at this school, teachers and students alike, really were uncommonly attractive. Even Deuce and Ace were pretty. “Y-You’re an older brother?”

“Yup.” He chuckled. “I have quite a few siblings. Out of all the boys, there’s only one girl. What about you?”

“I’m… I’m the youngest out of four.” I grinned, trying very hard to distance my homesickness from the conversation at hand. “All but one are girls.”

Cater snapped his fingers, deeply amused by this for some reason. “You guys are like total opposites!”

Deuce seemed surprised. “I wouldn’t have guessed how big your families are based on your personalities… wow.”

“You think so?” Trey chuckled.

I shrugged, deciding not to get into the other details of just how _large_ my family really was. We had so many cousins and aunts and uncles; I didn’t even know the majority of them. Then there was my step-mother’s side of the family who were on the other side of the world, so I’ve never seen them outside of video calls with her. “I guess.”

“I have some siblings myself, but…” Cater shook his head, almost shuddering at the thought. “My older sisters do nothing but boss me around. They’re terrifying.”

“Younger brother here bringing up how off-topic we’re getting~!” Ace sang, raising a hand and snickering.

Trey paused, quirked an eyebrow, and smiled. “You adapted quickly.”

The ginger grinned. He spoke up again, “Anyway, so the reason why we have to follow those crazy rules is because of the statue?”

“Not exactly.” Cater explained, tucking some hair behind his ear and he slurped up some ramen. He chewed and swallowed, and started talking as he reached over and grabbed his drink. “It’s the queen herself. Although she doesn’t truly hold any power over us. How strictly we in Heartslabyul actually _follow_ those rules depends mostly on the dorm leader. Last year’s was pretty chill about it, but he didn’t last for very long.”

Trey nodded. “Yeah. Riddle took over and is now known as the most serious among all the dorm leaders. He follows the rules to the max.”

“Blech.” Ace stuck out his tongue. “What a pain…”

My skull feels like it’s going to split apart. The queen ruled over a crazed land, abusing her power and authority to behead any who would go against her or make even the simplest of mistakes. People even went out of their way to paint the roses red after mistakenly planting white.

In that sort of country curiosity must be a deadly thing. Curiosity even killed the cat, after all. But in a wonderland of madness… would satisfaction be enough to bring it back?

The pounding in my skull started to worsen.

What if… nothing was as it seemed because…everything is what it isn’t? Left was right and up was down, and time didn’t really exist. If the cat were to actually lose its head, what would happen? If everything was what it wasn’t, then surely that cat would survive? I bet no harm would even be done to it.

It was just a dream after all.

Or was it?

Ace, Deuce, Trey, Cater…

Red and black card soldiers marching at a practiced pace, all at the order of their queen.

Eugh, I feel so sick. I leaned over, the back of my hand pressing to my lips as I swallowed the bile bubbling its way up the back of my throat. _Just a dream,_ I had thought. Yet the dreams I’ve been having are oddly similar to what’s happening here in reality. I’m uncertain as to whether they’re my own missing memories or if they’re memories belonging to the person I was trying to locate in my dreams, but no matter the case I _have_ to stop thinking about it.

I don’t even know where half of these thoughts come from anymore. My brain acts on its own sometimes and I wind up like this- hunched over and on the verge of vomiting.

“-anora? Eleanora?”

A pair of fingers snapped in front of my face and I jumped, gaze shooting up to see Deuce frowning in concern.

“Are you alright?”

“Y-Yeah, I’m… fine. Sorry.” I blinked. “Um, wh-where were we? The other dorms?”

Cater chuckled. “You’re a bit of a space cadet, aren’t you? It’s kinda cute, not gonna lie. Heh.”

“Down, Cater.” Trey warned, holding a hand up as if he were about to bop him on the head. “Reel back the flirting for five minutes, okay?”

“Huh? Flirting? He was?” I looked at ginger-haired third-year in disbelief. “Y-You were actually being serious about the… the date… thing?”

Yeah, nope. I was not used to saying that word. It makes me feel weird and I don’t like it. The boys all looked at me, mildly amused by how slow I was to pick that up. Berating my distracted brain and hating my inability to read others intentions properly when it came to this specific subject, I hurriedly raised my hands up and shook my head.

“I-I’m flattered, but no thank you. I-I don’t deal with relationships. Plus, I don’t really know you.”

“Oof.” Cater cringed, placing a hand to his chest, but he didn’t seem too terribly heartbroken. “Rejected already. That’s okay; I’ll win you over sometime.”

“Uh, probably not. Sorry.”

Ace sighed and shook his head at me. “You know what? You’re _really_ dense.”

“I am not!” I defended. “I just choose to ignore it! I-I thought he was joking when he said the thing earlier, so…” I looked down, worrying my bottom lip. My face definitely a bit red. “You know. I didn’t… think much on it.”

“It has to be outright said to you, huh?” He thought aloud, probably recalling what happened in my dorm right after he got collared by Riddle. Ace clicked his tongue at me disapprovingly. “Not all men are nice, El. A lot of us are wolves. If you don’t start paying attention you’ll get gobbled up, just like _this-!”_

I yelped when he snaked his arm around my shoulders, pulling me to him while his other hand curled into a fist, Ace grinding his knuckles on my head. “Ow, ow, ow! Hey! Your collar, dude! Wh-Who would even _want_ to- ow! How does this make you a wolf!?” It was only due to Deuce reaching over and batting his fist away that Ace stopped, but the ginger didn’t release me. I surrendered myself to my fate and huffed, coughing lightly with a small pout. “Jerk…”

Deuce looked almost exasperated by our antics, and knowing there was no stopping it completely he instead focused his attention to the third-years. “The other dorms…?”

Trey chuckled, pushing his glasses up. “Well, as Cater said there are seven dorms- one for each statue. Ours, Heartslabyul, is based off the Queen of Hearts and her strict ruling. Next is Savanaclaw, the dorm based on the King of Beasts and his fortitude. Octavinelle, the dorm based on the Sea Witch and her benevolence. Scarabia, the dorm based on the Sorceror of Sand’s consideration. Pomefiore, based on the Beautiful Queen’s perseverance. Ignihyde, based on the Lord of the Dead’s diligence. And, last but not least, Diasomnia; the dorm based on the Witch of Thorns and her elegance.”

I made a face. “Yeah… I’m not gonna remember that.”

“Their names are too long!” Grim complained. “How can anyone memorize all that!?”

Cater laughed. “You’ll figure it out eventually, even if you don’t intend to. You’ll be here for several years, after all.”

I sure hope not.

Trey chuckled. “Which dorm you get suited into is decided by the mirror during the entrance ceremony, but… each one has its own unique set of characteristics.” 

Ace finally released me and I breathed, hands coiling around my throat. I sent him a sour look, the ginger merely snickering and taking a sip of his drink. Rude. I bit into my rice, watching as Cater snapped his fingers and pointed at Trey. “I get it~! Yeah.”

“What… characteristics?” Deuce inquired, furrowing his brows. He had already finished his latte and pasta, and was now working on his egg sandwich.

“Hmm, for example… ah- look over there.” Trey turned, observing the room for a moment before pointing at someone a couple tables away. I squinted, trying to figure out who he was talking about, before my eyes went wide and I shot up, alarmed.

“Dog ears!?”

“Shh, not so loud!” Trey scolded, and I felt my face flush again. I hurriedly sat down and sunk into my seat, hiding my face in my arms- ashamed. I wasn’t expecting that kind of animal trait. Ace and Grim snickered at my mumbled apologies, while Deuce hid a chuckle. “Jeez. Anyway, you see how tough he is, right? That kind of rugged look definitely means Savanaclaw.”

Rugged… oh! I remember Leona from the ceremony having a sort of rugged appearance. He was the dorm leader, wasn’t he? I think that’s right. D… Does he… also have a dog ears? Oh man, I really hope so. Wait- that person also has a dog tail! It looks so fluffy. Maybe- _no._ I don’t get along with aggressive or hyper dogs in general, so how am I supposed to talk and ask a humanoid one if I can pet their tail?

“Yup, yup!” Cater took a bite of his food. He quickly chewed and swallowed. “That dorm has a lot of people who are good at sports and martial arts! They’re… basically like the buff and gruff big bro types? So long as you don’t trespass on their territory, anyway. If you look closely, you’ll see that their armbands are yellow-and-black.”

“So…” I raised my eyebrows, snapping to attention and grinning slyly. “...they’re Hufflepuff?”

They all stared at me, confusion on their faces. I sighed in defeat when I saw this.

“Nevermind... No one will get my references here.”

Grim thought about the armband thing for a minute. “If you guys wear this color and they wear that color… then what dorm does _that_ guy belong to? The person with the purple-and-grey one?”

We turned to see who he was talking about, and saw someone moving to put their tray away. He had to be about the same height as the two boys sitting on either side of me, with curly silver hair and blue eyes. He actually looked a little… familiar, though it was hard to tell why from a distance. His uniform color reminded me of that weird Jade person from the hallway.

“He’s from Octavinelle.” Trey informed. “And at the table in front of us are some guys from Scarabia. They have the dark red-and-gold armbands, see?”

I held the edge of the table, leaning my head back dramatically and declaring in as quiet a shout as I could manage, “Gryffindoooor~!”

More weird looks. I cleared my throat, sitting back up.

“Sorry, it’s, uh, it’s a coping mechanism. Ahem. Please continue.”

“You’re such a strange one, Ellie.” Cater laughed at my weirdness and curled his fingers around his drink. I ignored the nickname. “But people say those two dorms are, like, super smart! No one can compare to them when it comes to written tests. Although the Scarabia dorm leader himself isn’t all that great when it comes to studying.”

“Uh-oh~!” Ace sang, grinning. “There’s a sign that we’re getting of topic again~!”

Trey quirked a brow at him. “Back to what we were saying… those at that table, the people who are practically glowing, are members of Pomfiore. They have a purple-and-red armband.”

Glowing? What on earth did he meant by- _oh._ Oh wow. Now it makes sense. Those are some very pretty boys. Grim gasped, standing on his seat, and Cater and Trey both looked down at him.

“There’s a really cute girl over there~!” 

“Wh-What!?” Deuce was alarmed. “At an all-boys school!?”

Ace clicked his tongue. “Idiots. There’s no way that’s a girl. The only “girl” in this school is Eleanora and she’s too old to even be considered a proper freshman. Miss “Adult” here doesn’t count.”

Cater and Trey blinked, it being their turn to show surprise.

“Eh?” The third-year ginger exclaimed. “How old are you!?”

I flashed an awkward smile, praying this wouldn’t change their opinion of me. “I’ll be twenty next month... The headmaster decided to enroll me without asking, so… yeah. It’s not like I actually _wanted_ to be a student again, if that makes sense? I don’t even know how I graduated high school. But he thinks I’m “essential” for the future of this college.” I lowered my head with a sigh. “I just want to go home. But I can’t go home because my “home” doesn’t exist since it’s in an entirely different world. I’m stuck.”

Seeing their dumbfounded faces, Deuce raised a hand. “I-It’s best to not question it. She’s telling the truth. She has nowhere to go other than the school, so she’s enrolled as a “beast tamer”.”

Trey brought a hand up to his chin, thinking deeply. “That would explain Grim…”

“Oi!” The cat monster looked offended by that. “I wasn’t tamed by her!”

“...and I do remember Riddle mentioning something like this just before class.” He continued. “It almost reminds me of the story about a child chasing a rabbit down a hole. She wound up in the Queen of Hearts’ kingdom as a result.” Trey smiled at me. “Riddle believes you and so do these two freshmen, so I will as well.”

“Count me in too, I guess.” Cater hummed. His eyes then lit up. “Man, I took a picture with an alien!? Totally crazy! Hey, hey, Ellie; let’s take another one!” He pulled out his phone. “I’ll make it “hashtag new girl” “Hashtag totally from another world” “Hashtag I just made friends with an alien”! It’ll be great!”

“Uh, c-can we not? Please? I only told you ‘cause you’re in the same dorm as them.” I gestured to Ace and Deuce. “Plus Riddle knows because of Grim, so…”

“Awww, fine~! But, hey, hey; if you guys wanna see girls I know this portrait in the west building named Rosalia! She’s pretty high-level. Though why you’d wanna check her out when you got a perfectly cute one next to you, I dunno.”

“I’m not interested in paintings, no matter how beautiful.” Ace said, a little disturbed. “And she’s too old for me, cute or not. I couldn't date her yet even if I wanted to.”

Wow, this conversation is uncomfortable. Can the mirror send me home yet?

“True, true. But not for me~!” Cater sang, winking at me. “I’ll just snag this cutie away from you guys and keep her to myself! That okay?”

Eugh, why is he like this? “I-I’m really not that cute, so-”

“You totes are!” Cater said, cutting off my second attempt at rejecting him. He beamed. “With your big doe eyes and rosy cheeks~ I just wanna mess your hair all up! It’s hard to believe you’re older than us. Aww, look- your face is turning even redder! Heh, you get flustered real easy, don’t ya, Ellie? I just wanna hold you in my arms and-”

“Cater!” Trey said, expression stern. “Stop it. That’s your last warning.”

“Urk… vice dorm head is getting serious…” Cater choked, leaning away from the green-haired man.He scratched his cheek, almost seeming uncomfortable himself after how Trey snapped at him. “R-Right. Well, anyway, since we were speaking of looks, Pomefiore is _all_ about them. Their beauty regime is second to none. And who knows; if you had magic, you might have been sorted into that dorm, Ellie!” He grinned at me.

I scrunched my nose up. I was sitting really close to Deuce at this point, part of me selfishly hoping he would defend me if Cater tried anything. If the conversation kept straying into this uncomfortable zone I was going to end up latching onto his sleeve for comfort. “N… No, no; I don’t think so.”

“Mmm~ I disagree, but okay. You could totally get tons of followers on Magicamegrammer if you wanted. And the Pomfiore dorm leader has over _five million_ of them!”

Trey shook his head. “Don’t focus on _just_ their looks. They have many students that are extremely skilled at making potions and curses.”

That caught my attention. “Curses?”

He blinked. “Yes.”

My hands curled in my lap, fingers clinging tight to my dress, heart picking up pace just slightly. So many possibilities were running through my mind at this moment. Was the person who cursed me in that dorm? How would I find them? “O-Oh. So, wait, if they know how to _cast_ curses… does that mean they can break them, too?”

“I should hope so.” He joked.

I swear my heart just stopped for a second, a huge surge of relief and hope washing over me. “R-Really?” I breathed. Trey paused, gauging my reaction, before his lips tilted down in a small frown.

“...Eleanora.” His golden eyes bore into mine and I tensed, oddly scared. “Is there something you’re not telling us?”

“Huh?” Oh frick, everyone was starting at me now. The hands that were grasping onto my dress skirt shifted, fingers lacing together and clinging so tightly my knuckles turned white. “Um, I don’t… think so?”

There definitely was. I scrunched my nose up, making a face as I stared into nothing, pretending to think about it when in actuality I was trying to ponder the best way to weasel myself out of this conversation. I hummed.

“As far as I’m aware I don’t think I’m cursed? Granted with how bad my luck is I probably actually am.” I laughed, bringing a hand up as nonchalantly as possible and placing a hand on the back of my head. “I dunno. Lots of weird stuff has been happening. Maybe me getting kidnapped was the _result_ of a curse? How cool would that be?”

Cater was greatly disturbed. “H-hey, don’t… kid around like that, ‘kay? Curses aren’t something to be joked about. They’re really scary.”

I’m well aware.

“That’s fair. Sorry…” I then pretended to think again. “Um, what dorm were we on, anyway? We keep getting off topic. Although it was kinda my fault this time…”

Cater hesitated. “Next would be Ignihyde, but…” He gave the cafeteria a once-over. “...none of them seem to be around in the cafeteria right now. You’ll recognize them by their blue-and-black armbands.”

“Alrighty. Ravenclaws. Got it.”

“I still don’t understand what that means, but whatevs.” He started to relax, though his smile was a little strained. “Basically the guys in Ignihyde all have some kind of wall around them, so even I don’t have friends in that dorm.” Cater sighed. “They’re the exact opposite of us Heartslabyul extroverts.”

Grim folded his arms over his chest, having finished his food. “So… they’re boring?”

“Word choice!” Trey scolded, laughing lightly. “They just have a very quiet image. The proper way to describe them would be to say that they’re introverts. Ignihyde students are skilled at using technology and building equipment using magical energy.”

I pursed my lips, nodding understandingly. “Definitely Ravenclaws.”

“That means…” Deuce raised the straw of his drink to his mouth, speaking before taking a sip. “...only the Diablomna dorm is next.”

I choked. “Th-The _what_ dorm?”

“How can you say that with a straight face?” Ace questioned Deuce, raising a brow. “It’s Diasomnia.”

“I-I just bit my tongue!” The blue-haired teen defended. Cater hummed, leaning back in his seat and looking around the cafeteria.

“Diasomnia is… there! Shoved into that booth in the back! Their symbol is the green-and-black armband. They’re like the celebrities around here.” 

I squinted, trying to follow his gaze, but all I saw was I big blur of uniforms. “So basically Diasomnia is the Slytherin of the dorms?” I think the fae I befriended wore a green uniform. I wonder if he’s over there?

“Sure.” Cater grinned, but it didn’t last long. His expression morphed into something more lamenting. “They have such an intimidating aura~ it makes it hard for us regular folk to approach. Their dorm leader has scary vibes to the _max_. Like, everyone is terrified of him. He even does class projects alone most of the time. Nobody wants to go near him.”

“Oh…” That sounds rough. “...but is he _trying_ to be scary? He could just have a scary face.”

“Who knows?” Cater shrugged. “I don’t think it’s intentional, anyway.”

Ace leaned forward at the table, squinting even more than I was. “I… Is that a kid at their table?”

Trey smiled. “You can skip grades and still enter this school. But he isn’t a kid. He’s a third-year just like us. His name is-”

“Lilia.” Everyone at the tabled jumped, letting out different variations of shrieks and shouts, a familiar man appearing upside down from above the table. Red eyes glimmered mischievously, lips curled upwards into a smirk. “Lilia Vanrouge.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got into the habit of drawing Jade and then he made himself show up in this chapter. Also at this point I'm giving up on any planned pairings. She gets with who she gets with, because the characters are writing themselves most of the time XD Maybe Malleus will make his comeback when I actually get to write his part, haha, but until then it's "what happens happens". Are we sure Twisted Wonderland isn't an otome??? (Just kidding) We're like THIS close to delinquent Deuce and I can't wait. 
> 
> Also Treyyyyyy~! He be suspicious. And Lilia jumpscaring everyone at the end, haha. I still can't believe he loves screamo music. XD Baby!Malleus canonically breathing fire and singeing Lilia's bangs is beautiful and I love it. More baby!Malleus and dad!Lilia content please, game. <3
> 
> EDIT: So I accidentally put Ace as an only child when he actually has an older brother, so I went and fixed that. Whoops.
> 
> EDIT EDIT: So I previously had Eleanora refer to Epel as someone who could be seen as a "trap" (as many feminine-looking boys in anime were described as such, same as masculine girls, and the boys even actually think Epel IS a girl until told otherwise) but someone brought it to my attention that was seen as transphobic, so I removed the whole "trap" dialogue thing. T'was not my intention, and I sincerely apologize if it offended anyone else. I honestly didn't think it'd be seen as such. I just thought it added to her character as someone who watched anime.


	13. Cafeteria Chaos

No one had been prepared for the fae’s sudden appearance.

My poor lungs _ached_ from the loud shriek that erupted from my mouth, and my knees stung as they banged against the bench table. I hunched over with a whimper, cradling my wounded knees with my hands, and in the background I could hear Deuce do something similar- the boy having smacked his elbow instead. Ace nearly fell out of his seat, my shriek scaring him more than Lilia did, and Trey jolted so hard his glasses wound up crooked on his face. Meanwhile Cater knocked his glass over, the ginger standing up with a fumbled curse, hurrying to wipe up the mess with a napkin. Grim choked on his food, smacking his chest to try and dislodge the chicken from his throat.

Seeing our disoriented states and the complete chaos he had created with his introduction, Lilia let out a loud bout of laughter. He brought his hands up to his face, trying to muffle the sounds, but it didn’t really work. Snickering, his mouth curled into such a large smile you could see his fangs, and he made to speak again- amusement strong in his voice. “You all may just call me Lilia. Kufufu~! Ahhh, that was truly a great reaction.”

Grim gazed up at him with big eyes, spitting out the chicken that had been stuck. “Y-You just- _like a ghost-_ teleported! You teleported!”

Lilia’s jacket must have been discarded at his table, because I could not see it on his form at all. Even as he jumped down and landed gracefully on my side of the table, it was nowhere to be seen. I gaped, recalling how he had done something like this when we first met, though minus the teleportation. Although in all fairness he could have done it and I just wasn’t paying attention. That was always a possibility.

“What are you!?”

But while the way he teleported now was similar to how the headmaster had done it, there was something… different about it. With Headmaster Crowley and Divus Crewel there was no warning- they just seem to straight up vanish. Yet when Lilia appeared there seemed to be tiny lights, like fireflies, floating around him.

“Now that’s a bit rude, don’t you think?” The fae said, his smile spreading into a crooked smirk. Mischief was clear in his gaze. “Were you all not so very curious about my age? I came over here thinking I should tell you.”

Finally deciding now was a good time to stop staring like a buffoon, I closed my mouth and grabbed my drink, taking a long sip. Lungs struggling to recover from my earlier shout, my burning throat and chest were quite happy to have the refreshing liquid soothe them. Hearing the fae talk, I decided that it would probably be best if I watched it all play out. He seemed like he was having fun and I really wanted to see how everyone would freak out after learning how ancient he was. It was super hard trying not to smile as my brain imagined all the different ways they could react.

“As young and beautiful as I may be, I can assure you that I am not of the age that one would consider me a child.”

Everyone looked so confused. I set my drink down, biting hard on my bottom lip to prevent myself from laughing. Trey looked especially dumbfounded. “Y-Young and beautiful…” The third-year echoed, staring at the man who was standing a few feet behind me and the chaotic duo I called friends.

This was freaking _hilarious_.

Lillia was such a troll, wasn’t he? Pfft! Ah- wait, what’s happening? I blinked, feeling a sudden weight leaning on my back, a pair of hands lacing together atop my head. Tilting his head, the fae rested his cheek on his knuckles, smiling warmly at the group. Eyebrows furrowing, I tried to turn and glance at him, but this new position made it a bit hard to do so.

“If you do not believe my words to be true, you can speak to this young one here. She knows.”

Cater looked almost as if his soul had left his body, face a bit paler than usual. Ace and Deuce, on the other hand, were frozen solid- neither boy moving an inch out of the intimidation they felt for Lilia. Humming, his chest vibrating against my back with that action and causing me to tense, the fae spoke again- deep voice _way_ too close to my ear.

“Is that not so, Eleanora?”

I thought I was going to be spared from any mischief. Yet here I am, having fooled myself yet _again_ today. Ignoring how weird I felt and the fact that my face was probably a light shade of red now, I awkwardly spoke, trying to sit up straighter despite the weight on my back. “Y-Yeah.”

Eugh, no; voice crack, why? I cleared my throat.

Determined not to be the only one feeling weird, I raised my hands up- attempting to pat Lilia on the head and failing. He chuckled when he realized my intentions, but didn’t stop me when I ended up patting his pointed ears instead. Pointed ears that, though I have seen before, I can now confirm to be a hundred percent real. A part of me knew it was going to way harder to embarrass a several thousand year-old fae, but this kind of contact was making me uncomfortable and flustered, and his voice being right next to my ear only made it worse.

“He just… looks good for his age, y’know?” I stammered out, voice higher pitch than normal.

Frick! No. Stop that.

“Also he’s, like, totally a dad. And by that I mean he actually raised someone. So… yeah. Old man here. A super pretty old man, but old.”

Wait, is that his face I’m touching? Aha! A grin spread across my lips and I poked his cheeks, the fae shifting just enough that I could crane my neck and get a better view of him, the back of my head resting on his shoulder.

Whoa, his fangs looked really sharp. What was he, a vampire? He said he was a faerie, so I doubted it, although it made me wonder if the faes in this world had any sort of relation to them or if vampires actually existed here. His eyes were such a dark red, too, with hints of magenta mixed in with the crimson. It was sort of mesmerizing. His pale skin and dark lashes only made the colors stand out more, and his delicate features gave him a certain charm that most people didn’t have.

Gods, he truly was beautiful.

Beautiful and… very... mesmerizing…

Lilia smiled and tilted his head at me knowingly, humming in amusement, and it was then I realized I was staring. Knowing full well I had just embarrassed myself again I hurriedly moved back closer to the table, face flushed, and decided in my panic that it was too late to try and correct my actions and that I should simply own up to it. “L-Like I said, very pretty! A-And also because I totally forgot to mention it before-!”

I frantically gestured back-and-forth from the boys to the fae.

“Lilia, friends! Friends, Lilia!” I pointed with my thumb at the man behind me, coughing a little breathlessly into my sleeve. “Totally met him on my way to get a uniform this morning! He’s… super nice, promise. I-I guess you could say… that he’s my _fae-_ ry new friend?”

Silence.

“...No? No one?” More coughing. I fought a wince, smiling as bright as I could at the group, fingers digging at my chest as pain erupted within. “D-Darn, I… really thought that was a good one.”

That was when I felt it; the chuckle vibrating in Lilia’s chest before he pulled away, allowing me to sit up completely. The fae seated himself between me and Deuce, forcing me to scoot closer to Ace. “I see what you did there.” He said, patting my head with a snicker, his gloved fingers gently tousling my hair.

...This place is so weird.

But I forced myself to not seem affected by him or anything else, instead turning my smile into a lazy closed-eye grin, my fingers snapping at the fae in a joking fashion. “Eyyy~! You know it.” Man, I can’t believe I’m really trying to befriend a freaking faerie.

I almost felt bad for the other boys, what with how dumbfounded they all looked. Ace, Deuce, and Grim were staring at us like we were aliens! Which, I mean, did sort of make sense as Lilia wasn’t human and I was from another world entirely, but I had a feeling it wasn’t actually because of that. Trey and Cater had just told us that Diasomnia was the celebrity dorm with hard-to-approach people, and yet here I was acting so casually with one of its members. It was no wonder why they were freaking out.

Unfortunately… _almost_ was the key word. Humor was my coping mechanism, whether it be dark or light, and so in my stress I found myself finding more amusement in their reactions. Trey’s movement was stiff as he made to reposition his glasses, the third-year still startled and trying to comprehend the current situation. Turning in my seat to look at Lilia, I tried to divert the conversation into something a bit less weird.

“So, uh… what’s up?”

That went horribly. Like, _that_ was my best effort? Really me? Talking to people is clearly easier behind a register. I miss feeling like an video game npc, repeating the same lines over and over, waiting for someone else to come into the line like they were some sort of adventurer. Ugh. My socializing skills are failing.

“What indeed.” Lilia mused. “These young ones were all so very curious about me; I figured I should _drop in_ and answer their questions. It would have been rude of me otherwise, would it not?”

Oh. The fae moved then, facing everyone else at the table.

“You all need not be afraid to approach us of Diasomnia. Just come over and speak with us. Are we not students of the same academy?” He gestured towards the table he came from, the very one we had been talking about earlier, and it was then I noticed that the people there almost seemed to be… glaring at us. “No matter age or dorm, we will welcome you all with open arms.”

Maybe it was just the angle and I was still paranoid, but it almost looked like they were glaring at me specifically. As if their eyes were staring daggers into my own. My eyebrows furrowed and I tilted my head, wondering if I was imagining it. I didn’t want to think that people I didn’t know would hate me, but previous experience taught me otherwise.

Lilia was thousands of years old, maybe even older, which meant he was definitely someone deserving of the utmost respect. Coming from Diasomnia, with a dorm leader so scary no one dared approach him, and students who supposedly have auras so intimidating it makes everyone actively avoid them, made wonder… if they were all protective over each other. It sounded like they only _had_ each other in that dorm, since everyone else is so scared of them. What if they were all faes? Was Lilia the only one in this school?

I wanted to know.

Maybe I should look out for pointy ears and colorful eyes from now on… I have to be careful not to accidentally “give” my name away.

But… still… it didn’t really explain why his classmates were glaring at me. Lilia was the one who started acting friendly first and since I felt mostly comfortable around him I went along with it. And, sure, he was a bit of prankster- or at least it seemed like it- but he wasn’t jerk. I don’t think he’d go so far as to pretend to have a different personality when talking with people outside of his dorm. He didn’t seem like the kind of person who would manipulate others into hating someone.

Especially not after the way he talked so fondly of his son.

I mean, a single lifetime probably passes in the blink of an eye to faes, so Lilia was probably trying to spend as much time as he could with his human child. Okay, no- I’m not gonna think about it. I’ll make myself even more upset if I do. Wretched emotions, I have enough of them already! My brain needs to stop derailing into different territory and focus.

“Those guys don’t seem to be very welcoming…” Deuce commented, frowning at Lilia as he saw the angry looks being sent this way.

“Kufufu… so it seems. My apologies.”

That was when it hit me. “Oh, Lilia!” I grabbed onto the edge of the table, leaning over with a large grin, trying to see both him and the boy beside him. The fae blinked and looked at me, still smiling. “That’s Deuce, by the way! He’s the one who helped me when this guy- Ace- tried to skip out on detention! Also the grumpy cat over there is Grim.”

Lilia brought a hand to his chin, looking over the trio thoughtfully. “I assumed they were the three you told me about, though I was not certain which one was the troublemaker…”

I gave a half-shrug, half-nod at that. “That’s mostly Grim. He’s a bit of a _Grim_ -lin.”

Ace snorted, the ginger quickly turning his head away and covering his mouth to try hiding it, determined not to show how he found at least one of my bad puns funny. “Th-The most accurate description…!”

The cat monster was not happy. “Oi!” He growled, standing on his hindlegs and placing his front paws on the table. “Who are you calling a kitty!? I’m not a gremlin either!”

...The joke had completely flown over his head.

“Anyway,” I continued, “these two guys next to Grim are Trey and Cater. Trey is super nice.”

Lilia laughed upon seeing the mildly offended look on a certain green-eyed ginger’s face. Trey cleared his throat and coughed into his fist, hiding a chuckle, though he failed to remove the grin on his lips as he watched his friend stand up. “Wha-? What about me!? Cay has been super nice, too!” Cater exclaimed. Ace was still doing his best not to laugh, straight up refusing to look in this direction, and Deuce was cracking a small smile. Grim looked sourly up at Cater.

Ignoring the third-year’s protests on how he had been nothing but nice to me, I focused on Lilia again. His lips were curled upwards as always, yet something unidentifiable flashed in those red eyes. “Lilia?” Turning his gaze to me, I found myself very confused when the hand that had been so playfully ruffling my hair shifted, instead moving to his chest- the man sprawling his fingers out once more in a fashion oh-so familiar to me.

Familiar…

...and ominous.

“One was enough,” He murmured, “and yet you’ve already gone and entangled yourself in a garden of roses.” I said nothing, confused by his words. I wasn’t even sure I was breathing when he lifted his head up, his red eyes boring into my own. “What is it you hope to achieve? Do you think the flowers will protect you from the thorns?”

“Wh… What…?”

He shook his head, smile light, a quiet chuckle escaping him. “Ah, do not mind me. My apologies.” Lilia stood, climbing off the seat. He laced his hands together behind him. “I did not intend to frighten you. I was merely thinking out loud. I do hope you’ll forgive this old man…?”

“Uh…” I had no idea what to say. My eyebrows furrowed and I swallowed down the lump in my throat, ignoring the chill that had washed over me. The room felt very cold all of a sudden. “Y-Yeah, of course. Are you okay?”

Lilia looked surprised at that. Then he laughed, a genuine smile spreading across his beautiful face. “I am quite well, young one. You should be more worried for yourself.”

“Meh. I’m fine.” He was acting strange. “Oh! I don’t think I’ve actually said “hi” yet since you showed up! Unless I did. But I don’t remember it, so… hi~!”

“Hello.” He greeted, chuckling. “I shall return to my table now; I fear I’ve disturbed your meal for far too long. Humans such as yourselves require nutrition to function, after all. Farewell, young one.”

“Huh? Uh, o-okay. Bye-” I wasn’t able to finish.”-bye…”

Lilia had disappeared the same way he appeared, into a bunch of tiny firefly-like lights. When I looked I could see him sitting back at his table, where he gave a small wave at us before chatting with the people beside him. The strangers were no longer glaring, instead preoccupied with Lilia and probably demanding what happened over here. When I looked back at the boys at _this_ table, I found myself pausing in my return to my meal- seeing them all staring.

I blinked. “What?”

Trey shook his head, pushing up his glasses with a strained smile. “You… probably shouldn’t be worried all that much about getting into trouble with other students.”

“...Okaaay?” That was random. I had completely forgotten about that part of our earlier conversation. “Why not?”

Cater leaned forward, eyebrows raised, his voice hushed. “You’re friends with a _Diasomnia_ student!”

I was still confused. “...So?”

The ginger lowered his head, sighing in exasperation. Ace looked at us, a disturbed look on his face. When he spoke his voice was just as quiet as the third-year’s sitting across from him. “Is no one gonna mention how _freaky_ that guy was? Our table is at least twenty meters away from his and he _heard_ us! That’s insane!”

“He’s… a fae…”

I mean, I don’t remember many stories about faeries having great hearing, but based on the shape of their ears I’m assuming they did. Lilia certainly seemed to. Ace whirled around, staring down at me with intense eyes. “Human or fae, his hearing should still be the same as ours! How did you meet such a crazy person!?”

“He’s _not_ crazy. And I told you; I met him on my way to get a uniform! After you showed up at the dorm, I spent all night working with the ghosts trying to clean the baths. I-I ended up super sick after and… uh,” I cleared my throat, scratching the side of my neck, “I might… have collapsed in the hallway.”

“What!?” Deuce was very much alarmed. “Are you alright?”

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine! I’m… fine.”

He didn’t look like he believed me. Deuce frowned, staring at me, before lowering his head. “You’re always saying that when you’re not. Ace even had to coerce you into letting us help you catch Grim earlier…”

Oh jeez. “I-I just don’t want to bother you guys! Y-You’ve already done enough, so…”

“Clearly not.” Ace grumbled. I yelped when a fist bopped the back of my head. “If you’re not feeling well let us know, you idiot! How are you supposed to help us study if you’re half-dead on the ground, huh? Huuh!?”

“A-Anyway!” I declared loudly, trying to weasel my way out of this confrontation. Ace and Deuce both made faces, realizing what I was doing, but before either of them could say anything I started talking again. “That was when I met Lilia! I get nauseous when I don’t eat and I already had a fever, and when I’m sick my breathing gets worse. So Lilia was super nice when he found me and dragged me to the cafeteria so I could eat, and then he walked with me to the potions classroom! After that we had a hair-ruffling contest, which was really fun, and then he walked me to the gate! That’s when I found you guys rummaging about the dorm with Grim.”

Ace raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”

“I don’t even know anymore...” Deuce sighed. Grim nodded in agreement. Trey and Cater looked amused.

I awkwardly continued. “But, like, the point of the story is that Lilia is super nice and not crazy… so…”

“He’s insane!” Ace hissed.

“He is _not-!”_

“Now, now.” Trey raised a hand up, attempting to calm us down. “Let’s not insult Lilia. Diasomnia just has some rather… peculiar members.”

Ace scoffed, folding his arms over his chest. “Is that so?”

“Yes. And while we’re still on the topic, I’ll have you know that they all tend to excel at magic. So don’t go getting any bright ideas.” Trey smirked, his words serving as a warning. The younger ginger paused, catching on quickly, and grimaced. “Their dorm leader, Malleus Draconia, is even counted as one of the top five mages in the world. Diasomnia students are not people you want to take lightly.”

“Unless you’re Ellie, apparently.” Cater commented, holding a finger up knowingly. He winked at me. I stared, expression blank, brain not quite understanding what he was insinuating. “She’s already done-gone and befriended one. I’m still trying to make friends in that dorm. I guess that’s what happens when you’re that cute…”

“Meh.” Ace scrunched his nose up. He squinted and looked at me for a second, and I leaned towards Deuce when he tried to pinch my cheek. Unfortunately, I didn’t lean far away enough because his arm was unfairly long and the right side of my face started to explode with pain. “I think it’s more ‘cause she’s so small and pathetic.”

“Pafe- _oi!_ Yer the one alwayth comin’ teh me fer ‘elp!”

“What was that? I can’t understand.” He grinned, tugging on my cheek more. I cried out. “Speak louder!”

“Ooowww! Weh go o’ me!” My words came out garbled as I tried to smack his hand away, but my efforts were for naught. As much as I hated to admit it, this jerk was stronger than me. “I’mma ‘it you!”

“I seriously can’t understand you.” He laughed. I flinched when he pinched my cheek, about to scurry away and hide on the other side of Deuce, only just as I was going to start moving I found Ace’s hands squishing my face now. Starting to get frustrated with the ginger, I grabbed his wrists and tried to push him away, raising my feet up and shoving them against his legs. “Whoa-! Hey! Watch it!”

“Leh go then!”

While I was still in the process of trying to kick him away, Ace released my face. I was just about to cheer at my victory when the world quickly started going lopsided, and I found myself falling backwards. His red eyes went wide and he reached out, a curse escaping his lips, and my hands flailed for something to grab onto. Thankfully that something happened to be the person sitting close to me on the left, the blue-haired teen having moved as soon as Ace let go of my face. My skull was _this_ close to smacking off the ground when an arm wrapped around my shoulders, and I wasted no time in latching my fingers onto the sleeve of his other arm, eyes wide and vision spotted as I clung to the person who had just saved me from obtaining a concussion.

“Ace!” Deuce scolded as he sat back up, watching the way I hunched over against his chest and coughed, my lungs acting up due to the rush of adrenaline from the fall. The teen glared at his classmate. “How many times do I have to tell you to be careful with her!?”

The ginger hesitated, looking a bit guilty, before he awkwardly retracted his hand and raised it up to ruffle the back of his hair, turning away with a scowl. “Yeah, yeah. This just proved my point, didn’t it? We’re basically bodyguards.”

“Th-That’s not…”

“You’re always carrying her around, too! Hell, I had to carry her away from that creepy monster back in the mines while you distracted it! She can’t even participate in gym. Her brain is seriously the only good thing about her. Other than that she’s useless.”

“Aren’t you guys being a bit too harsh on her?” Trey asked. “I know she doesn’t have magic, but she must have other helpful talents…”

Cater blinked. “Ah, I just met her so I don’t really know any of her skills, but I do remember seeing Deucy carry her out of the hedge maze back in Heartslabyul…”

Shut up.

“See? I told you.” Ace said, frowning. “So stop yelling at me!”

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

Still shaking, lungs wheezing within my chest, I tightened my grip on Deuce’s arm. My eyes were starting to burn the longer these people kept talking. Turning my head and glaring daggers at a certain ginger-haired first-year, I ignored all consequences and raised a leg up, kicking him as hard as I possibly could in the knee. Ace yelped, whirling around with a glare of his own, and was about to yell at me when he stopped. Releasing the blue-haired teen who had caught me, I grabbed onto the table instead, hunched over with tears in my eyes.

“El…” Ace trailed off, as if realizing he may have finally crossed a line. “H-Hey, what’s with that look? Are you really that upset?”

“Upset…?” I echoed quietly, not removing my foot. “You’re joking, right?”

He stared.

“It’s not like I _want_ to be like this!”

Doesn’t he think that I want to run? That I want to scream and shout and dance without running out of breath and having a coughing fit? Even now my lungs are stuttering, and whether it was from my asthma or the curse I’m honestly not sure. But it hurts. It hurts and I’m scared, and I just want to go home. And I know I keep whining about it over-and-over-and-over and I know that doing so isn’t going to solve anything.

But I just… don’t know what else to do.

My lips curled back and I choked, lowering my head as the tears fell, shoulders shaking. “I-I’m not… m-making… you help me.” My fingers grabbed at my skirt, scrunching the fabric up as I struggled to speak through the sob attempting to break free. “I can… do things on my own, so just… stop if… i-if you don’t wanna help…”

Cater clicked his tongue at Ace. “You’re awful. What kind of guy makes a girl cry?”

“H-Hah? I didn’t do this! Sh-She just started blubbering on her own! She does that, y’know? She’s a crybaby!”

I feel like I’m losing my mind. Shouting in a cafeteria, getting into arguments, threatening people; this isn’t me. This isn’t who I am. I brought a hand up to my face, shoulders shaking, choking on the sob building up in the back of my throat. In just a few days I’ve managed to change so much and I hate it. I want to go back to the old me.

“Hey, El, come on, you know I didn’t mean any of it… right? You’re still gonna come with me to apologize to Riddle, right?”

I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to be here and the tears won’t stop. They’re out of my control. They’re out of my control just like everything else in this god damn place!

My voice cracked as I spoke, the words getting stuck on my tongue. “How…?” My eyes squeezed tightly shut as I kept my face hidden, palms pressed to my sockets to try and alleviate the pain. “How am I supposed to know!?” I hiccuped and coughed, vision completely blurred as I forced myself to look at him. “How am I supposed to know if you mean it? I-I don’t know _anything!”_

He paused, surprised.

“N-Not about th… this world o-or monsters, or ghosts or magic, or you or Deuce or Grim, o-or if I’ll ever even get home! I-I don’t… even know about the headmaster and… and he’s the one who’s keeping me here! I don’t know _anything.”_ My eyes squeezed shut again and I ducked my head. “I don’t know anything a-and… you guys are all I have…”

I dug my fingers into my thighs so hard my knuckles went white and my hands were shaking in my lap.

“I-I’m scared. I-I’m constantly _scared_ and _frustrated_ and _angry_ and I _hate it,_ but you’re a-all I have and I barely even know you! A-And I’m the one who keeps calling us friends, even though I just… I just keep bothering you guys a-and having you he-help. Even though I don’t deserve it. A-And now…” I hiccuped again, coughing painfully into my shoulder as I raised my hands up, sobbing rather grossly as I gestured to the two newcomers. “And now I-I’m having a-a-a freaking… meltdown in front of people we just met! You all should just…”

I buried my face in an arm, body trembling, my other hand curling over the top of my head as if to shield myself from any outside harm.

“You all should just... tell me to go away.”

Ace was right. I _was_ useless. I knew it, I always have, and I stubbornly tried to prove otherwise with determination and hard work. But there was no winning. All I’ve ever done is cause trouble to everyone at Night Raven College. The mirror screwed up big time by grabbing me.

“This mood is ruining my tuna sandwich…” Grim grumbled.

Cater chuckled nervously. “I-Is that really the issue here…?”

The cat monster scrunched his nose before taking a deep breath, blue eyes turning towards me. “Listen here, human! You need to stop that at once!”

I sniffled, slowly raising my head up in confusion to look at him. “H-Huh…?”

“This self-pity of yours isn’t going anywhere! Besides, if you get kicked out of this group that means I get kicked out too, and I refuse to have only one minion!” He climbed onto the table, pushing his tray out of the way, and then placed a paw on his hip while using his other to point at me. A toothy grin spread across his face, the cat monster looking quite pleased with himself. “You understand!? So stop looking so miserable and toughen up! I refuse to follow the orders of someone with eyes as puffy as that!”

Ace and Deuce scowled at Grim.

“Who are you calling a minion?” The ginger demanded.

Deuce sighed. “You aren’t my boss. Now get down! Your dirty pawprints are getting all over the table…”

“No! Not until the human gets it! And who are you callin’ dirty!?”

“You, obviously.” Ace stated bluntly. I looked down, tired brain working to figure out what the cat monster was trying to say. He had no say in what the boys did, so their decision was their own. I was just a nuisance who wasn’t even supposed to be in this school in the first place. It isn’t as though I’ve ever done anything deserving of their help or friendship, either. I just caused problems. “As for _you,_ little miss angst…”

I blinked, eyes widening when he turned to me, his expression something fierce. I yelped when pain erupted on my forehead, the ginger flicking me hard with his middle finger and thumb. “Ow!”

“Stop trying to tell us what to do!”

“I-I wasn’t-” 

“No, shut up.” I closed my mouth, alarmed. Ace was furious. “I get it, you’re freaking out; hell, it’d be weird if you weren’t. You’re a girl in a school full of boys and you can’t use magic. You can’t really defend yourself either ‘cause you’re so sickly and weak. We get that. I get that. What you need to get is that _I’m_ an asshole and that nothing I say should be taken seriously!”

“Ace…” Deuce himself was staring at the ginger, blue-green eyes disbelieving.

“If it sounds like I’m insulting you, I’m just being a jerk! I like riling people up and you are a _very_ easy target. Got it? I don’t actually think you’re useless.”

“So…” It took me a minute to process that. “Y-You don’t hate me?”

He slammed a hand to his face. “I was _obviously_ messing with you, stupid!”

“Wait, hold on. So you do hate me?”

Ace was this close to tearing his hair out. “Where are you getting that!? What am I saying that’s confusing you!?”

“E-Everything? You keep contradicting yourself!”

“Ugh, this is why I call you pathetic…”

“That’s-”

“Just… stop talking.” He said. I flinched when he placed a hand on my head, the boy forcing me to look in the direction of the third-years. “Stop talking and finish your food, before I get tempted to smack you for being a dense moron. I don’t hate you.”

“...Oh.”

“Yeah. Tell her, Deuce.”

“H-Huh?” The blue-haired teen tensed, before awkwardly nodding his head. “Oh, yes! I-I do not hate you either. I… wasn’t aware I had ever given you the impression that I did. My apologies. I do think of you as a friend, Eleanora, so please don’t ever think that I don’t. Back when the chandelier broke, you were willing to lose the only shelter you had in this world in order to help me. For that… I can’t thank you enough.”

Deuce smiled at me- so warmly it almost hurt.

“We’re friends. And as your friend… I don’t like seeing you cry. So please forget what that stupid Ace said.”

“Who are you calling stupid!?” The ginger demanded.

I couldn’t help it. Upon hearing that I found myself snorting, cringing at the pain in my throat, and started giggling when both boys stopped glaring at each other to look at me. “O-Okay, okay. I’ll try. I’m sorry! Pfft- you two really don’t… w-waste a chance to a-argue, huh?”

“Th-That’s…” Deuce stammered.

“I mean…” Ace trailed off.

Both boys looked away from each other, faces a bit pink. Feeling oddly cheered up at seeing their bickering and the embarrassed faces they made after being called out, I laughed and reached out- linking their arms with mine. They blinked, looking down at me in surprise. “S-Sorry for being a mess. Thanks… and you, too, Grim.” The cat monster jumped, startled. Closing my eyes, I flashed him a smile. “Thank you.”

“Hmph! I-It’s about time you realized my greatness and thanked me! Jeez!”

Even though he made me so mad earlier by taking off, I couldn’t find any of that anger within me now. It was… weird. Some of the weight that had been crushing my shoulders felt alleviated somehow. The relief was close to overwhelming, and though I was still dizzy and tearing up some, I could feel myself start to relax- truly and completely.

“Yes, yes.” I said to Grim, releasing the boys to sniffle and wipe off the remaining tears off my face. I hiccuped a little, taking a drink to try and remove the wretched affliction. “The greatest. Ugh. Ace, I hope you realize that I’m still super salty over what you said.”

“Hah-? Seriously? Come on!” He looked exasperated. “I even went and did all that mushy gushy gross stuff! Wasn’t that enough?”

“Nope!” I grinning, holding my cup up to my lips. “But don’t worry, by the time I get my revenge you… you’ll have probably… forgotten about this… already.”

Cater leaned over to Trey, holding a hand up and whispering. “What… just happened?”

The green-haired third-year chuckled, pushing his glasses up. “Honestly, I’m not too sure. But I think our adorable freshmen just made up.”

Cater raised his eyebrows, looking at us. “Huh. That drama solved itself quickly.”

“I highly doubt that.” Ace grumbled. “This was traumatizing. Traumatizing, I tell you! Making me say all that gooey friendship crap… eugh. I hate it. I was really hoping you weren’t that serious of a person, El, but nope; you totally are. Jeez, as if mister goody-two-shoes wasn’t bad enough…”

Deuce narrowed his eyes. “You better not be talking about me, you truant.” The only response he got was a tongue being stuck out in his direction. “Well, I may be serious, but at least I don’t go around making girls cry! This is why we can’t have nice things, Ace.”

“What nice things!? Besides, I didn’t make her cry! How many times do I have to say it; she started doing that on her own!”

“Anyway!” I clapped my hands together, grin still on my puffy red face. My eyes really hecking stung, but they weren’t nearly as bad as my headache and burning lungs. “As I was saying, I’m totally gonna get revenge one day and you won’t be expecting it, ‘kay, Ace? I already know I’m useless, it makes me feel even worse about myself when someone else points it out. Therefore, I’mma plot. And scheme. And it’ll be beautiful. Everyone thinks Diasomnia students are scary, right? Well, I’mma be much scarier.”

“Pfft!” He snorted. “I’d like to see you try. You’re like a freaking rabbit. Like now- you were literally sobbing because you thought we hated you.” A wicked grin spread across his face. “Aww, do you have a crush on us? That’s so cu- _ow!”_

He cried out when I smacked the back of his head.

“No, no, hey!” Cater raised a hand up, trying to diffuse the situation from escalating again when he saw Ace open his mouth to snap at me. “Stop that! And, like, I know you’re just joking, but you guys really don’t want to make Diasomnia angry- even in jest. Trey wasn’t kidding about Malleus being the craziest of the crazy. He’s _super_ powerful. That’s why everyone is scared of him. So, Ellie, please don’t go making fun of their reputation…”

“I mean, I wasn’t trying to make fun of them, but okay.” I blinked. “And- _wait._ Malleus?”

That name sounded eerily familiar.

I had recognized it when Trey brought it up earlier, but I wasn’t really given the chance to think much about it. Malleus Draconia… right? He’s the dorm leader of Diasomnia. My eyes widened and I sat up straight, figuring out why I recognized the name. “The ceremony!” I exclaimed, startling everyone at the table. “He was missing! Th-That was why I recognized Lilia, too; he had to… to… to guide the other students to the dorm since he wasn’t invited! ...Oooh, that’s rough, buddy.”

I cringed, bringing a hand up to my face, coughing slightly.

“How could they forget to invite one of the people _supposed_ to be there?”

“A lot of people are scared of him.” Trey reminded.

“S-Still…”

Cater chuckled. “You’d understand if you met him. Although, in all fairness, our own dorm leader can be pretty scary, too.”

“Yeah, no kidding.” Ace said, frowning deeply, not at all hesitating to state his less-than-kind opinion on a very specific redhead. “He’s totally crazy! All I did was eat a single piece of tart and he collared me!”

“Ace…” I tried to warn, rubbing at my throbbing eyes, “...please be careful.”

“What for?” He demanded.

I sighed. “Because…”

My voice trailed off. I heard a familiar voice hum from behind us and, upon seeing the expressions the cat monster and third-years in front of us were wearing, Deuce and I turned to see who they were looking at. Ace, despite all his talk about me being dense, remained completely oblivious about himself and his surroundings. Cringing, I reached out to tap Ace on the shoulder to get him to stop, but it was too late.

The damage had already been done.

“His narrow-mindedness is awful! Who gets mad over tarts!? He’s insane!”

Riddle heard the insults. I facepalmed, coming to the conclusion that there wasn’t going to be any collar removal today. Ace screwed himself over. I watched between my fingers as Riddle hummed, the boy folding his arms over his chest and narrowing his grey eyes at the ginger. “I’m insane, huh?”

“Yeah!” Ace snapped. He whirled around, still not quite realizing who he was talking to, simply reacting to the voice he heard. “You blew right past strict and straight into tyrant-mode!”

He froze.

“D… Dorm leader…”

Riddle was _not_ happy. I could practically feel the anger radiating off of him. That isn’t even mentioning the flurry of emotions Ace was currently going through, the boy a mixture of horrified and scared, knowing he was most likely going to get to keep that wretched collar around his neck. I gave a stiff wave in greeting, peering at the redhead between my fingers. “H-Hey there, Riddle! Sorry about… him…”

This was the most eventful and dramatic lunchtime I’ve ever had. Holy frick. Riddle, hearing my voice, turned towards me, his eyebrows furrowing when he saw my puffy tear-stained face. “Eleanora?”

“Hey. S’been a while, right?”

He looked so confused. “Were you cryi-”

“Man, you’re lookin’ extra cute today!” Cater suddenly exclaimed, standing up in his seat and placing his hands on the table, making an attempt to distract the redhead. “Did you do something with your hair? You look as great as a Pomefiore student to-!”

“Talk too much and you _will_ lose your head, Cater.” Riddle warned. He unfolded his arms and placed a hand on his hip, frowning deeply.

I went silent, absolutely stunned by the calmness of the threat. I had only really spoken to the teen once, but… jeez. I never realized how truly intense he was. Seeing the look in his storm grey eyes and how the anger was brewing in them made me understand that this was _exactly_ the kind of person who would snap over an eaten piece of tart.

“Aw, come on now,” Cater said, scratching his cheek with a strained smile, “don’t be like that!”

Riddle ignored him. He turned his attention back to us freshmen, staring down Ace for a long moment before turning his gaze to Deuce. Then his eyes fell to the cat monster, before finally landing on me. I tensed, swallowing down the lump in my throat, somehow feeling afraid of this person who I spoke to easily a day before. “You’re the ones who caused the expulsion fuss earlier, aren’t you? First the statue, next the chandelier… hmph.”

He shook his head. When he opened his eyes again I swore they were like knives, digging into our souls and judging us, determining out fate.

“How much chaos do you intend to create?” Riddle demanded. “How much trouble do you intend to bring _her_ into?”

...Rewind. What? I blinked, confused. That was not what I was expecting. Ace, Deuce, and Grim were apparently all surprised too, for their shock showed on their faces.

Riddle threw his arm out, fury forming on his features. “Students making a girl cry… and those from Heartslabyul no less? I forbid it! Allowing people like you into this school… what was the headmaster even thinking!? I should cut off all your heads for this!”

Okay, nope; no, no way, please don’t. I hurriedly raised my hands up, a little scared to be speaking up to someone with this sort of temper. “I-It wasn’t them, Riddle; I just… got a little too stressed out, so…”

He paused.

“Th-Thank you, though.” I flashed him a smile. Oh no… oh gods. His face was already red from his shouting, but now it looked even darker in color. Did I tick him off!? “I-I, uh, scolded the guys properly about the chandelier incident, so…”

“I-I see.” He cleared his throat, crossing his arms again and raising his chin up. “Good. It seems I was right in there being hope for you as a proper example. However…” Riddle turned his attention back to the boys, narrowing his eyes dangerously in warning. “If you three cause any mischief again, please note that I will _not_ forgive you, even if the headmaster himself does. And if any of you make this young lady cry…”

Silence hung in the air for a moment.

“I will do _more_ than just cut off your head.”

Um… wow. I bit my lip, glancing on either side to gauge the slowly paling faces of the boys sitting next to me. Riddle was terrifying. A part of me wanted to laugh out of how nervous I was, my anxiety spiking as I thought about all the ways I could wind up accidentally getting on the redhead’s bad side, but at the moment I just found myself relieved that he liked me enough to… protect me, I guess? I wasn’t sure how to describe it.

“Y-Yes, sir!” Ace stammered.

“Yes, dorm leader!” Deuce choked.

Grim flinched. “Sir, yes, sir!”

“Hmph. Good.” Riddle then turned, as if he were about to walk away, when Ace suddenly jolted and stood.

“A-Ah, wait, uh, dorm leader…!” The second-year halted, looking at the ginger from over his shoulder. Ace awkwardly pointed at the collar he was wearing, a bead of sweat trailing down the side of his face. “Speaking of forgiveness, is there… y’know… any way you could possibly remove this collar?”

He sounded so hopeful it hurt.

Riddle shook his head, the boy placing a hand on his hip. “I was planning to if you had learned your lesson, but the way you were talking so rudely earlier shows you haven’t. So no, I will _not_ remove your collar.”

“Wh-What!?” Ace’s eyes went wide.

Riddle smiled at him, storm grey eyes dark. “There’s no need to be worried. First years will only be learning the fundamentals, so you won’t need to use any magic until way later. You’ll be fine. Besides, without your magic… you can’t cause anymore problems, can you?” His voice turned sweet. “Isn’t that wonderful? Now, why don’t you all finish lunch and hurry to your next class? As rule two hundred and seventy-one goes, “one should eat lunch and leave their seat within fifteen minutes”.”

Oooh, that’s why he left the cafeteria so early the other day. Huh.

“If you break the rules…” Riddle dropped his smile and sweet voice, staring down at the boys. “...you all understand what will happen, right?”

Ace hung his head and groaned. “Another weird rule?”

My head began to throb again. I stared at the redhead, observing him, eyebrows furrowing as my migraine grew worse. Talking about rules and the queen made me nauseous before, but hearing Riddle speaking about it… did something else. I felt dazed and breathless, and like something was pricking me from the inside. Tearing me apart.

Something… was there… and missing…

That head of red hair…

It was so familiar to me, in a way I couldn’t explain.

I was so caught up in my thoughts and the pain that I completely missed Riddle snap at them, demanding the proper respect when addressing him. The boys cooperated, though Ace was none too happy about it. Riddle nodded at them, pleased by the outcome of his scolding. “Good.”

“Now, now,” Trey said, standing and holding a hand out, smiling at the second-year, “I’ll look after them for you. Please, don’t worry yourself over them.”

“Hmph. You’re the vice dorm leader, so please do your job properly.” Riddle said. He turned back to everyone again. “Rule three hundred and thirty-nine, “after a meal one must always drink lemon tea with two sugar cubes”. Seeing as I must buy more sugar cubes from the school store before we can follow this rule, I will be on my way. I can’t believe someone would commit such a huge offense…”

He started to mutter under his breath, back facing us and he began walking.

“Using up all the sugar cubes without replacing them… honestly the audacity is…”

I was starting to see spots. How he looked as he walked away from us, the way his little hair ahoges shifted with each step… it was all so familiar. So familiar… and dizzying… and before I even realized what I was doing I was moving, some sort of _desperation_ and _fear_ welling up inside of me when I saw him leaving. There was no thinking, no breathing. I couldn’t even hear Deuce and Ace shouting at me in protest. My feet pounded against the ground and I outstretched a hand.

“R-Riddle…!”

He paused, hearing my voice and footsteps, and turned just in time to have his wrist snatched up, his storm grey eyes growing wide. I had no idea what possessed me in that moment. It was so quiet, so abrupt; we just stared at each other for a second. “Wh-What is it?” His face was slightly flushed. He was too stunned to be angry.

“I…” I had no idea how to answer. I tentatively released him, holding my hands up in front of me as if to show I meant no harm, and forced myself to move back. I was breathing so heavily; did I really just run over here? My lungs were on fire and my legs felt like gelatin. “I just…”

He turned to face me fully. Riddle frowned. “What is it? Speak up, Eleanora; I must finish my errand before the bell rings. Otherwise I would be violating one of the Queen of Hearts’ rules.”

“I-I just…” Breathe. I pressed a hand to my chest, wheezing, deciding to go for a smile. “Thank you. For earlier, I mean. And, uh- you know what? I’m gonna keep rambling if I don’t shut up, so I’ll stop talking.” I coughed into my shoulder. Ow. “I’ll… see you later, I guess.”

He blinked. “Yes… if you remain with those four, I suppose you will. I’m afraid we’ll have to postpone a tour once again, but I’ll see if I can find time.” Riddle smiled.

An… actual smile. A real one.

“Keep them in line while I’m away. And do take care of yourself.”

“Uh, y-yes, sir!”

He chuckled at my enthusiasm and started to walk again, but this time… I didn’t chase after. A hand on my shoulder had me jolt and I whirled around, looking up to see a concerned Deuce. “What was that?” He asked, scolding me lightly. “Why did you take off after him? You aren’t supposed to exert yourself!”

“I-I’m sorry, I just… I don’t… I don’t know.”

I answered honestly, as it was the only thing I could do. Clinging to his arm, Deuce the gentleman helped walk me over back to the table, where I realized just how far I had actually ran. Holy frick. I all but collapsed in my seat, coughing and wheezing and downing what was left in my glass. Trey looked at me in concern. “Are you alright?”

“Give her a minute.” Ace sighed, fist bopping me lightly on the head. “She gets like this sometimes.”

“I’m probably gonna have to carry her to class now…” Deuce murmured, knitting his eyebrows together. He brought a hand to his chin, sighing “Grim doesn’t make it easy for you, but you don’t like to make it easy for us either, huh?”

“S… Sorry…”

Everything hurts. I feel like I’m dying.

“I guess it’s a good thing Riddle likes you, though.” Cater commented, grinning. “Otherwise you might not have gotten away with grabbing him like that.”

  
“Riddle is a gentleman.” Trey said, correcting the ginger. “He’d have been nice to her even if he didn’t like her.”

Cater shrugged. “I dunno. Ellie’s pretty cute. Did you see how he blushed earlier?”

“P-Please… stop… sayin’ those things…” I choked. Deuce awkwardly pat me on the back, as if trying to comfort me, though he was so unused to physical contact that he wasn’t quite sure how to go about it. “It’s… weird…”

“I don’t get it,” Grim began, folding his arms over his chest, tail swishing irritably, “why _is_ he so nice to her? How come he lashed out at us? He’s such an obnoxious jerk!”

“Hey!” Deuce turned his head, glaring at the cat monster. “Don’t be so rude!”

People started whispering, passing by our table nervously and looking at the doors. “Th-The dorm leader left, right?” They were all wearing identical uniforms to the boys I was sitting with. “I-If he finds out what we did…”

“He’s gonna cut off our heads!” One of them whimpered. “I can’t believe I broke rule one hundred and eighty-six! If he learns that I ate a hamburger steak on a Tuesday…”

“Why can’t he just let us eat what we want? There are so many rules…”

“It’s impossible to memorize them all…”

The pounding is getting worse. Get out of my head! I’m not even trying to remember anything and yet… it hurts. It hurts so much. Make it stop. I want it to stop! My fingers tangled themselves into my hair, eyes squeezing tightly shut as I coughed, forehead against the table ledge. Rules, decapitations, tyrannical queens, and red hair. What does it all mean?

I don’t understand.

“You know,” I heard Trey say, voice oddly soft, “Riddle became dorm leader within the first week of him starting college. Even though he speaks harshly and can come off mean, he’s only trying to make the dorm better. He doesn’t actually intend to trouble anyone.”

“Someone with good intentions doesn’t go about collaring people!” Grim retorted.

Cater and Trey laughed awkwardly, knowing he had a point. Pieces of a puzzle began to click together in my head and I slowly looked up, tasting something akin to iron on my tongue after another cough. “He’s… d-doing bad things… for a good reason, right?” Trey looked at me upon hearing that, something flickering in his surprised golden eyes.

“Yes…”

I nodded slowly at that, leaning back down, before speaking up again in a monotone voice. “Also, Grim…” The cat monster blinked. “...he only collared you… because you went crazy… at the entrance ceremony. So… that one is on you.” 

“Tch!” He clicked his tongue. “But it’s awful! That kind of spell is the worst; it completely cuts of your magic flow!”

“Oh, you mean Riddle’s _unique magic?”_ Cater inquired.

“Unique…” Deuce echoed. He looked up. “Does that mean it’s a magic only Riddle can use?”

Trey hummed, thinking about how to explain. “It’s… a magic that is strictly limited to only one user. In simpler terms, the magic is a “reflection” of the caster, so it’s a magic “unique” to them. You’ll learn about it in class eventually.”

“Riddle’s _unique magic_ lets him seal another person’s magic for a fixed amount of time.” Cater continued. “It’s called…”

“Off with your head.” I finished, voice quiet. I felt like I was going to fall asleep any minute. The third-years looked rather surprised at my knowledge. “He told me… before…”

Grim tensed, his fur standing on end as his ears drew back. “J-Just the name is terrifying!”

“As a mage, getting your magic cut off feels like you’re literally losing your head.” Cater said, chuckling. “So you’d best follow the rules while you’re in the dorm, ‘kay?”

Trey nodded, smirking a little. “That also means that so long as you follow the rules, he can be pretty nice. Take Eleanora for example; while she isn’t exactly a dorm member, she also hasn’t outright broken any rules. He’ll treat you similar to how he treats her if you just behave.”

“She totally broke the rules though!” Ace exclaimed. “She broke the chandelier right along with us!”

“That’s not how he sees it.” Trey informed. He laughed again. “He’s completely convinced you dragged her into your shenanigans. Apparently she left quite the impression on him the other day.”

Lovely. I sat up, head hanging and eyelids drooping. “Not… intentionally…”

“Even better.” Trey said, grin widening. “Keep up the good work.”

I gave a weak salute. “Aye-aye, cap’n.”

Ace groaned, running his fingers through his bangs. “So, what? I have to go and buy another tart? What happens if I don’t?” He narrowed his eyes at Cater. “Will you just kick me out again?”

The older ginger chuckled, waving a hand. “Sorry, sorry~ but as rule fifty-three has decided, I can’t let you return until you bring back the stolen good. In this case, a tart. You should probably know that Riddle really looks forward to being able to eat the first piece, so he might not forgive you unless it’s whole.”

“You said you wanted to be friends.” Ace accused. “Why can’t you just overlook this?”

Cater waved a finger at him. “Now, now, this and that are two totally different things.”

“But aren’t whole tarts pretty expensive?” Deuce asked, frowning. He looked at Ace in concern. “Will you even be able to pay for it?”

“Geh…” Ace slumped over, defeated. “I don’t have that kind of money… I’m broke!”

“Then why not just make one?” Cater suggested. I blinked at that, looking at him with wide eyes.

“That could work. If done right… it could be a lot cheaper…”

Cater nodded, snapping his fingers at me. “Yuppers! You got it. The other tarts were all made by Trey, so money wasn’t an issue for us.”

I recoiled, wondering if I heard that correctly. Focusing my attention on Trey, I stared at him in awe. This man can bake? Truly? No way. How much can a person be blessed with? Can he cook, too? Oh, I really hope so. Ace was even more surprised than I was.

“You made that tart?” The boy stammered, disbelieving. “No way! It tasted incredible- and I mean it was _way_ better than what they sell in stores! Are you some kind of professional or what?”

“Nothing that dramatic.” Trey laughed. “Although I do appreciate the compliment. Thank you.”

Wait. We’re forgetting something. “Wh-What about the recipe? A-And… equipment…” What does one even use to bake a tart? I have no idea.

“Hm? Oh, yes. If you guys want, I have all the utensils and seasonings needed to bake another tart back at the dorm, but…” Trey smirked, pushing up his glasses and crossing his arms over his chest. “...my help doesn’t come free.”

Damn it. Of course.

“Wh-What!?” Ace cried out. “You mean I have to pay you!?”

A laugh escaped the third-year, breathy and sudden. “I’m not gonna squeeze money out of a freshman; what kind of person do you think I am? I just mean that if we’re gonna make the tart Riddle wants to eat, we’re gonna need the ingredients. One of those ingredients is chestnuts; I want you to go get them for me. Does that work for you?”

Ace grimaced. “Either way is a pain… tch. Fine, how many do you need?”

“Since we’re making it for the unbirthday party…” Trey thought about it for a moment. “..maybe around two to three hundred of them?”

“Th-That many!?”

Everyone except Cater was shocked. Trey nodded, smiling at us. “Yes. And then afterwards I’m going to need you to roast them, and remove the outer shell so we can take out the nuts.”

“...Can I leave?” Grim asked making a face.

“Me too.” Deuce said. Ace whirled around, glaring at them.

“Traitors!”

I raised a hand up, still a little woozy. “Give me… five minutes a-and then… I’ll help…”

Cater leaned back into his seat, wagging a finger at everyone. “Now, now; tarts made together are always the ones that taste the best! It’s a good way to make memories. And hey; you never know- you might be able to make a debut as a food blogger!”

Trey leaned forward, lowering his voice almost conspiratorially. “Keep it a secret from Riddle, but freshly baked mont blancs are the most delicious.” He then grinned, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “And only those that help make it actually get to try some.”

He knew what he was doing. Trey knew exactly what to say to get the others motivated. He barely even finished sitting back up before Grim was scrambling over the tabletop, rushing at Ace and hoping onto his shoulder. The ginger yelped. “Let’s go, go, go! We gotta hurry and pick up those chestnuts!”

“But… where are we… even gonna find them?” I asked.

Trey smiled. “There should be plenty in the forest behind the campus’ botanical garden.”

“Alright.” Ace said, picking the cat monster up and dropping him into my arms. “Then we meet up after class in front of the botanical garden.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was mostly listening to covers of "his theme" while writing the angsty parts, and "Candle Queen" when writing Riddle. XD All I know how to write is fluff and angst, which means there's a lot of it, and I apologize for that. I'm the worst I know, haha. Sometimes it feels whiplashy and it makes me worried about posting. But oh well. I'm just glad you guys are still enjoying the story! :3 
> 
> We got a quite a bit of Lilia in the beginning, as well as some Malleus talk (wiggles eyebrows). Lilia just completely takes over sometimes, I swear. The "rose garden" thing wasn't supposed to happen. Cryptic fae observations. XD When you're haunted by roses but befriend the rose dorm. The irony is real. 
> 
> Also I totally drew some pictures for this chapter that I'mma be posting on my tumblr if you guys wanna check them out later. They should be up sometime after this is posted. I wanted to finish this first before I scanned them into my laptop. 
> 
> ELEANORA FINALLY HAD THE BREAKDOWN YOU GUYS IT'S OKAY NOW WOOO! It just helps to actually talk about issues, sometimes, you know? And she's been stressing and stressing and Ace just made her snap by speaking and reminding her of what she's super insecure about. So now she can really start growing in development now that she's gotten all that off her chest. Trey and Cater were so awkward during that, lol. Poor girl's going through a lot and they understand that, but it's somewhat uncomfortable when a person you just met starts crying. Deuce is trying, bless his soul. 
> 
> But what IS the reason Riddle is so nice to El? Hmmm~~~. 
> 
> What do you guys think? :D I was gonna end this chapter after El grabbed Riddle, but there was like three minutes left of the "episode" before it went to the Botanical Garden and I was like, nah let's make it an extra long chapter. Also, if updates (here and on tumblr) become a bit less frequent in like two weeks it's because I'm finally getting scheduled for work again, so I'll be leaving quarantine. Here's to hoping there actually isn't a second wave. T_T 
> 
> You lovelies stay safe! And have a wonderful day/night wherever you are! :3


	14. The Lion's Den

As it turns out, Deuce did in fact have to carry me to our next class. 

I tried to apologize and attempted to convince him into setting me down so I could walk there myself, but he stubbornly refused. He was worried about me collapsing again. Apparently he wassuper bothered by the knowledge that I had collapsed earlier, and I mentally berated myself for ever bringing it up. I was simply trying to explain how I met Lilia, and that felt like some pretty crucial information as to how it happened. I didn’t think it would unsettle him so much.

My sickness was normal for me. Talking about it nonchalantly was easy.

But focusing completely on it and having other people worry about it? That was what really messed with me. I was grateful they cared, but in this sort of useless state… I was being a nuisance. It felt like I was becoming too dependent on Deuce for his help, and freaking them out made me feel like a terrible person.

And becoming too dependent on others… was exactly what I was afraid of. Him being all too willing to help only made it worse. It felt like I was taking advantage of his kindness.

Damn it. I squeezed my eyes tightly shut and buried my face in my arms, hunching over in my seat. The teacher was droning on-and-on about things I didn’t understand, things I couldn’t even comprehend since I wasn’t from this world, and I found myself getting lost in my thoughts. It was so _suffocating_ being in this room and not doing anything of use. The consequences of my earlier stunt with Riddle weren’t helping that much either. My lungs felt like they were simultaneously burning and being pricked by dozens of little needles.

The only thing that snapped me out of the dark abyss I was starting to fall into was Ace, who had tapped me on the shoulder with a mischievous grin. I looked at him in confusion when he showed me a small piece of paper that was crumpled up into his palm, and his red eyes practically glimmered as he pointed at the trashcan located near the teacher’s desk.

Oh no.

Deuce and Grim saw what was going on, and _both of them_ shook their heads in disapproval. Deuce pressed his palm to his forehead, disappointed in his own choice of friends, but he couldn’t stop himself from watching as Ace flicked the piece of crumpled paper. I watched with wide eyes as it soared through the air, and it was at that moment the teacher turned around.

_Nope!_

I hurriedly went back to breathing, hoping it was convincing, while Deuce looked down at his own notes. Grim fell back onto my lap, startling me, and Ace fiddled with his pencil- tapping it against his chin as though thinking about what to write down. The teacher narrowed his eyes, demanding who threw the paper, but no one spoke. It was very stressful and quiet, and never had I hatedAce more in that moment.

At the same time, though… it was kind of funny. I’m just glad he didn’t flick it at the teacher.

The bell rang shortly after, sparing anyone from punishment, and when we left the classroom Ace was a snickering mess. “D-Did you see-!? Ahaha! Man, I wish I did that in our magic history class. Pfft.”

“Eleanora was right.” Deuce sighed. “You are the troublemaker.”

“Agreed.” Grim muttered, sitting on my shoulder. “He didn’t change at all.”

Ace scowled at them, changing his tune right quick upon hearing them insult him. “Ya’ll were just worried the teacher was gonna call you out. I’ll have you guys know I’m a professional prankster.”

“You’d get along great with the ghosts.” I informed dryly, recalling the way the undead liked to jump scare me and how they were telling me their master plans while we cleaned the bathroom. “Like, no, really; I think you guys might be distant relatives. Know anyone named Moe, Larry, or Curly?”

“As if.” Ace stuck his tongue out. He grinned, looking at Deuce and trying to peer over his shoulder at the schedule. “What’s next? Oh… crap. We have a magic class next? I’m screwed.”

“I’m sure we’re just going to be learning the basics.” Deuce informed. “The dorm leader said so himself.”

I made a face, yawning loudly and wincing as my lungs ached. I pressed a hand to my chest with a cringe, rubbing just below my collarbone as though it would help soothe the pains. “I-If it’s magic… I’m not in it. Grim is.”

Grim huffed, folding his arms over his chest. “What, so I gotta go in there alone? No way!”

“You have to.” I stated bluntly, staring him down. The cat monster glared at me. “You’re the magic half of this student, remember?”

“...You could still come with.”

“I vehemently refuse.”

Ace snorted as we made our way to the lockers. “Oh, yeah? What’re you gonna do while you wait for us then, huh? Get into more trouble?”

“Trouble-!?” I sputtered, coughing a little after doing so. I looked at him incredulously. “Y-You’re the one ticking people off!”

“Says the girl who nearly got her face punched in earlier!”

Deuce shook his head. “Guys, come on. This isn’t the time.”

“Then you convince her.” Ace said, looking at him irritably. “She listens to you.”

“Th-That’s not-!”

I rolled my eyes. “Guys, seriously; it’s fine. The agreement was that Grim would handle all the magic classes, remember? So~ I don’t need to go. I’ll just… head to the library or something.” I still had so much I needed to look up. If the headmaster kept his word and was researching a way for me to get home, I could spend my time trying to figure out more about this curse I have. It was a win-win. “It’s fine.”

I think the cough I did at the end ruined my chances of persuading them. Frick.

“I don’t know…” Deuce said, trailing off uncertainly. “You still don’t look very well, Eleanora. If you bump into those delinquents again you might get seriously hurt.”

I opened my mouth to argue, only to pause. He had a point there. Deuce held his books to his chest, frowning deeply and staring, waiting for a response. A grin returned to Ace’s face, seeing how close they were to winning this debate. I began to grow hesitant in my decision, especially after seeing the kicked puppy expression a certain blue-haired teen was wearing. I could feel my willpower starting to crumble against that gaze, the urge to pat him on the head increasing.

I wanted to hug him and tell him that it was all going to be okay. That _I_ was going to be okay. I always was, one way or another, so there wasn’t any point in freaking out over me. But I couldn’t. And instead I stared at the ground with furrowed brows, my teeth worrying my bottom lip as I fiddled with my fingers, my mind and heart conflicted.

We were friends, as they had all confirmed an hour ago during lunch, and as such I felt awful about them worrying over me. This was just… how I was, so I didn’t see why they should be so concerned over it. I mean, yeah; my illness frustrated me and caused me to have a bit of complex, and it certainly made finding a job harder than it needed to be- but I had landed one eventually. At least, I had until I was brought here to Twisted Wonderland. And considering these three guys were all I had in this place, I was… happy to know they cared.

I just… felt like… their concern was either misplaced or undeserving. I don’t feel as though I’m giving enough in this friendship to receive all the warmth they keep trying to give me. Maybe that’s just my self-loathing talking and I’m overthinking everything, but… if I wasn’t so weak and sickly… would they even be this nice to me? Would they tell me to just do whatever while they take their classes if I was healthy?

I don’t want… to be defined by my illness. By this curse.

I want to be worried over because they genuinely care about me and not because of my health condition. Does that make sense? I don’t know.

A pair hands smacked both sides of my face lightly, snapping me out of my thoughts and causing me to yelp in surprise and mild pain. “Ow!” Ace glared at me, squishing my cheeks again like the jerk that he was. “H-Hey-!”

“Stop that.”

“Wh-Wha-?”

“You were making that face again! Stop it.”

Grim blinked. “What face?”

I whined as Ace forcibly turned my head towards Grim and Deuce, the teen tugging at my cheeks and causing pain to spread throughout my face. “The one she made at the cafeteria. You know- before she snapped? It’s her “bad thoughts” face. I’ve figured it out after some comments she made.”

“...I’ve noticed that, too.” Deuce murmured. “She mostly makes that face when she zones out.”

The frick is happening here!? I do not appreciate being called out like this! I pried Ace’s fingers off my face and rubbed my aching cheeks, ducking my head down to avoid being grabbed again. “I’m fine! L-Let’s just get to class already, okay!?”

Ace grinned. “So you _are_ coming with us. Great! Glad that worked out.”

I stopped what I was doing and whirled around, alarmed. “Wh-What!?” There was no warning for what happened next; I was suddenly being dragged backwards, the ginger wrapping an arm around the front of my shoulders and forcing me to start moving. A small squeak escaped my lips and I found myself holding onto him for dear life as what little coordination I had was thrown out the non-existent window, my jello legs far from ready to start walking backwards. “A-Ace!”

He laughed, Grim eyeing him strangely from atop my head, and Deuce shook his head as he followed. “Careful!” The teen warned Ace for probably the tenth time since we’ve met each other.

“Yeah, yeah! Ooh, lockers are here! Hey, Deuce; you got the books this time? I’m gonna make sure little miss angst here doesn’t run off.”

“I suppose.”

This was such a pain. I’ve been tricked. I was actually _tricked_ by Ace into agreeing to go to class with them. I huffed, pouting as I found myself being forced into attending lessons that had absolutely nothing to do with me. Things only got interesting once school had ended and we had made our way to the forest behind the botanical garden, rummaging about for the chestnuts we needed, but… even that was sort of frustrating.

I honestly wasn’t sure what chestnuts looked like.

I knew about the nutsthemselves, just… not really their shell- which sounded pretty lame now that I was thinking about it. Granted, the only time I was able to actually able to go and play outside was back when I was a child, way before my lungs started acting up and I was forced to limit my activity. No one had ever pointed out to me what chestnuts looked like during that time, and afterwards I just never had the need to research them. It was a thing I was aware existed but outside of its appearance as a nut I paid them no heed.

Now that was coming back to haunt me.

Everyone was looking around and I was left here standing awkwardly, pretending to know what I was supposed to be looking for. There were all these spiky-looking tree plants on the grass, which I remembered would often get stuck on my clothes as a kid, and I almost always stepped on them because I had liked to play barefoot, but… there was no way _those_ were the chestnuts, right? Or… were they?

“Ow!” I heard Grim cry out. “They pricked my paw!”

Aw, frick. They totally were. I whirled around, alarmed, and watched as the cat monster pressed his paw to his tongue. “You okay!?”

“Y-Yeah, it just…” His voice was muffled. “...hurt.”

Deuce frowned, placing a hand on his hip. “I guess we can’t pick them up with our bare hands… not if we have to get over two hundred of them. We should go find a basket or some kind of bucket to carry them all.”

“The botanical garden should have some we can borrow.” Ace suggested, looking back in the direction we came. I made a face, wondering why we didn’t think to grab a basket before. It would have made life so much easier. “Should we check it out?”

“Sounds like a plan.” Deuce said. “Let’s go.”

This… was such a pain.

I sighed quietly to myself as I trailed behind them. If Ace hadn’t been running his mouth back at the cafeteria, we wouldn’t be having to do this right now. I still firmly believe that as strict and intimidating as Riddle was, if Ace had just apologized properly and wasn’t running his mouth off, then all would be forgiven and the collar would have been removed.

But nope- things just can’t be simple and clean, can they? He had to go and make him mad again.

I scrunched my face up and stuck my tongue out, glaring at the ground, Grim sitting on my shoulder. I hated this so much. I was going to wear myself out bending over to collect all the chestnuts once we had the basket. It was amazing I had even lasted this long considering all the insanity that went down since Ace came knocking on the front door of the abandoned dorm. I just want to sit down and relax for five minutes without stressing out over what I was going to have to do next.

I’m so tired…

A hand suddenly snatched my wrist and I yelped, finding myself being tugged forward, and I looked up in alarm to see a familiar ginger grinning at me. “Hurry it up, slowpoke!”

“I-I’m not slow!” I stammered, startled by the abrupt action. My brain fumbled to come up with a response, as I was still trying to recover from being snapped out of my thoughts. “Y… You guys just have long legs!”

Deuce chuckled at that. He slowed his gait to match our pace, Ace now walking at the same speed I was. I yanked my wrist back, cradling it close to my chest protectively, worrying my bottom lip. I could feel Grim swishing his tail, the fur tickling my neck and causing me to resist the urge to scrunch my shoulders up. Deuce actually smirked at me, his other personality starting to leak through a bit. “Are we sure it’s not just because you’re so short?”

I gasped, looking at him in disbelief. “Deuce!”

“What?”

“You were supposed to be the nice one!”

He blinked. Then… Ace burst out into laughter, snickering and snorting, slapping his thigh. Deuce scowled. “What’s so funny, Ace?”

“You!” The boy exclaimed, pointing at the blue-haired teen. His smirk stretched from ear-to-ear. “The goody-two-shoes just became the villain! Ahaha! How does it feel to be the troublemaker now, huh?”

Deuce shook his head, unimpressed. “I was merely making a joke; it was not meant to be taken seriously. Although... Eleanora _is_ quite short compared to us.” He held his hand up, pointing out the gap in our heights. I put on as dramatic a face as I could, pretending to be offended, and seeing this he smiled in amusement. “I imagine the only person that isn’t taller than her is that guy from Diasomnia. Lilia, was it?”

“...Yeeeaah.” I reluctantly admitted, sighing. I slumped over, pouting and crossing my arms. “This is so unfair. Of all the schools I had to get magically summoned to, it had to be filled with freaking giants. Five two isn’t that short! I mean, okay, it’s shorter than average where I’m from, but like- you all are so…” I faced them, throwing my hands up in the air as I gestured to the teens, walking ahead of them by like two feet and doing my best not to trip over any roots. “You know…! Tall. At least Riddle is the same height as me...”

Grim raised a kitty brow. “Sure. Oh, hey- I think I see the garden!”

Ace muffled his snickers and Deuce walked faster, the boys catching up now that I was ahead of them. We wandered inside the botanical garden and entered the temperate zone, where we were greeted with some _very_ tropical plants. What were half of these fruits supposed to be? My eyes went wide as I looked around, amazed by the sights. “Whoa…”

It wasn’t too cold or hot in here either. The air wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t completely fresh. It was just… nice.

“It’s way bigger in here than I thought it’d be.” Ace exclaimed, almost as surprised as I was.

Deuce nodded. “Yeah. But the caretaker has to be in here somewhere… Why don’t we split up and look for him?”

“Cool, cool. I’ll go right.” Ace said, pointing at the bridge leading into the east side of the garden. “Deuce, you go left.”

“Then I guess that leaves Eleanora and Grim to check the back.” Deuce continued. The boys looked at us, and I found myself dreading this plan. With how big this place was it was inevitable that I was going to get lost and, knowing my luck, I would end up finding myself entering a place I really wasn’t meant to be in. “We’ll meet back up here.”

“O-Okay…” I really don’t wanna do this. Grim, on the other hand, seemed downright excited about the whole thing.

“This mont blanc is gonna be delicious…!” He cheered as the boys departed, the teens rushing to the east and west wings. I begrudgingly moved my feet forward, eyes glancing around and observing the different trees and all of the foreign fruit hanging from their branches. There were even some pots full of flowers, which I thought looked utterly gorgeous. “Whoa~ check this out! What kinda fruit is it? They smell so yummy!”

“Don’t touch them.” I warned, walking past some more trees. I reached up, patting him on the head to ensure he was still there. I was a little worried he would take off again. “But to answer your question; I have no idea. I don’t… recognize any of these.”

I nibbled my bottom lip, glancing up at the branches and their strange produce.

“I do know some of the flowers though…”

This was starting to scare me a little. The plants in the botanical garden were reminding me of how different this world was compared to my own. I was hoping that if I stopped thinking about it I could just pretend I was in a foreign country and would able to return home any time I wanted, but… it was clear that deluding myself wasn’t going to work. I sighed, lowering my head and closing my eyes, wondering if I was going to be stuck here forever.

“Fun, fun…”

I was just about to ask Grim if he saw anything resembling an office when I felt my foot land on something… weird.

It almost felt like my boot had walked on some kind of water hose, what with the shape and sturdiness of the object, but then I heard a grunt. “Uh, h-hey…” Grim stammered, looking down at the ground. “W-What did you step on?”

I had no idea. Following his gaze, I lifted my foot and moved back, only to stare in horror at the thing twitching on the ground. Long and gold, with a tuft of dark brown fur at the end, it almost seemed to resemble a tail that belonged to a… a…

“L-Lion?” My voice cracked.

Why. Why is there a lion in here? Why is there a lion in the botanical garden!?

“That’s… a lion tail.”

Holy frick.

I started to panic, hands curling close to my chest, my feet sliding back slowly as I wracked my brain for what to do. The bushes started to rustle and I choked, watching as the tail rose up off the ground, a pair of very broad shoulders making themselves known as a very intimidating and towering man rose from the greenery. His messy, long brown hair curled around his shoulders, a couple of braids falling past his very familiar caramel brown face, giving his handsome features a bit of ruggedness that only made him more intimidating.

Those sharp, vibrant eyes… I recognized them somehow.

I… I know this person. The longer I stared at him the more certain of that I became, but my oxygen-deprived brain couldn’t think of as to _why_ I knew him. Those vibrant cat-like eyes that were piercing into my soul, judging me and hating me, and that scar…

Yes. That scar running down his left eye…

I definitely knew this man. But, wait, hold on- those ears… that tail… they belonged to him? He was the lion!? A growl erupted from the man’s throat, a _rumble_ reverberating from his chest as though he were some kind of animal. “You think you can just step on my tail and not say anything!?” He demanded, voice fierce and unforgiving. There was something almost hurtful about this situation, about this encounter we were having, and I wasn’t quite sure why that was.

Just who _was_ he?

As the cogs in my head struggled to spin, I could feel Grim dig his claws into my shoulder- his fur standing on end and his ears drawing back. Emerald orbs glared sharply at me from above, and then suddenly Grim was gone- leaping off my shoulder as a strong hand shot out and grabbed at my neck, slamming me hard against the nearest tree. I gasped, completely winded by the action, and I choked, coughing roughly as I found myself being strangled, my feet forcibly lifted off the ground by the pure _strength_ this man had.

“I was in the middle of nap!” He snapped.

It hurts. It hurts and I can’t breathe. This person is going to kill me; he’s seriously _going to kill me._ He was so close I could feel his breath on my face, and I found myself becoming lightheaded- tears burning my eyes. His teeth looked so sharp, like they were meant for tearing flesh apart. His pupils were complete slits. This man was going to tear me to bits, wasn’t he?

I… I can’t…

No…

I don’t want this. I don’t want to die.

I’m scared.

My hands clawed at his fingers, trying to get him to loosen his grip, my feet kicking at the tree behind me as I tried to alleviate the pressure on my neck. I wanted to cry, but the sob was stuck due to the pressure he was applying to my neck, and that only increased the amount of pain I was feeling. “L-Leona-!”

That’s right. That’s who this person was. He had been the student who protected me during the entrance ceremony. That was why this hurt so much now. That was why I felt so betrayed. Because he had been someone I had convinced myself to trust, regardless of the weird comments I had heard about him “eating” people. Regardless of my believing him to be some sort of cannibal.

But now it all made sense.

With his raw power and sharp features, and the long mane of hair that curled around his face and shoulders; this man was definitely, undoubtedly a lion. And… I was the foolish rabbit caught stumbling into his den. I forced myself to watch as his lips curled up into a rather sickening grin, the man tightening his hold on me. I choked, eyes feeling as though they were about to pop out of my skull, the heart pounding in my chest echoing in my ears and making it hard to hear anything at all.

“Haah? You know who I am and you _still_ stepped on my tail?” A dark chuckle escaped his lips. “You’ve got some nerve, you pathetic little…”

Leona trailed off, realization slowly flashing across his face as he got a good look at me. Next thing I knew I was being released, legs giving out the second my feet touched ground. I choked, wheezing and gasping, hands curling around my throat as I struggled to recover. Grim rushed over and placed his paws on my lap, kneading at my thighs and trying to get me to move.

“Human!” The cat monster cried. “Human, are you okay!? Gah-!”

He shrieked when Leona squatted down, and I froze when a hand smacked onto the tree bark next to my face. Effectively caged in, there was nothing I could do in my weakened state as he leaned forward, his warm breath tickling my neck and sending all sorts of _nope_ rushing through me. I inhaled sharply, lungs stuttering, and I squeezed my eyes shut when I heard him sniffing the hollow of my throat.

“...There really isn’t a spec of magic on you.” He muttered, voice low and way too close. Even as he pulled away I found it impossible to relax, watching as the man raised a hand up to his forehead, brushing his bangs back with a groan. “Damn it… of course it had to be _you_ out of all the herbivores in this school. I was this close to taking a tooth from you…”

“Human?” Grim asked, shaking my leg again. “E-Eleanora, come on, speak up! You’re breathing, right? Y-You’re not having an attack, right!?”

One of the ears on Leona’s head twitched at that. “What are you blabbering on about? Urk… she’s crying…”

He had been so nice before. I was hoping that if I found him again we could be friends; I never once thought about him trying to hurt me. I... I really thought he was a good person. But now… it was obvious that was not the case. I just had to be an unobservant idiot who stepped on his tail. He totally hates me now. He hates me and wants me dead.

The bruises forming on my throat are proof of that.

“Hey, herbivore.”

I tensed and Grim dug his claws into my leg, his big blue eyes wide and fearful of this lion-like man in front of us. Leona stared for a moment, eyebrows furrowed, a frown heavy on his face. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could…

“Leonaaaa~!” An unfamiliar voice rang out. “I found ya! Jeez, I’ve been lookin’ all over the place! It’s time for your remedial lessons.”

A young boy, maybe around the same age as the boys I hung out with, with curly dirty blond hair and big hyena ears, walked up with his hands laced behind his head. Leona grimaced, turning his head away, his tail flicking irritably. “The annoying one is here…”

“It’s because you keep failing, Leona.” The boy scolded, leaning over with his hands on his hips. He wasn’t that tall, but due to the man sitting on the floor he had managed to hover over the lion. The stranger flashed Leona a grin. “Keep it up and we’re gonna be in the same class soon!”

“Just knock it off already.” The brunet demanded, glaring at him out of the corner of his eyes, a low growl rumbling from the back of his throat as he bared his fangs. “I don’t need any lectures from you!”

“And I don’t want to keep nagging you!” The boy retorted. “It’s not like I enjoy it. You’d have no problem if you just _tried_ passing your classes. I know you’re capable of it. But whatever, let’s just- huh?”

He finally noticed us.

“Uh… Leona…”

“Hrm?”

“D-Did you just make a girl cry?”

Silence.

The boy whirled around, eyes wide, alarmed. “Whaaat!? Leona, you seriously made her cry!? But you’re such a gentleman! If your family or the rest of the dorm finds out, then-!” 

“Shut up! That _won’t_ be happening.”

Grim tugged insistently on my skirt. “H-Human, get up! Let’s go while he’s distracted!”

Right. I… I need to move. I can’t feel any of my limbs and my entire body felt heavy and feverish, but there was no way I could just stay here. Not with these people here. No matter how much it hurts or burns, or how dizzy I get, I have to keep _moving_ before Leona tries to attack me again. I…

I have to survive.

Grim screeched and latched onto my skirt, kicking at me and trying to climb up my back as I forced myself up, my hands and feet smacking hard against the ground as I scrambled to get away. Leona and the stranger turned just in time to see me break out into a clumsy run, but I didn’t look back. I just kept on moving. Eyes forward, lungs stuttering.

I ignored the black spots were dancing in my vision, simply pushing myself even more. Faster, farther, I _have_ to get away! I won’t… let myself die here.

I won’t let anyone kill me.

I’ll only accept death if it’s by my terms, and this is not it. I don’t care if I can’t see, if I can’t hear, if I can’t breathe. I’ll recover eventually. I always do. But until then, I’m just going to keep running. One step at a time.

I was vaguely aware of Grim shouting something at me, although I couldn’t make out what it was. My heartbeat was roaring in my ears, pounding so hard it hurt. My lungs ached and wheezed, and I found my body moving slower as the world around me blurred and spun, feet staggering about. A hazy image of blue and red entered my impaired sight and I failed to come to a halt, legs moving on autopilot as I knew if they stopped now there would be no more moving for a while.

But then I crashed into something. _Someone._ I was so out-of-breath I couldn’t even shout or grunt. I was completely silent save for my wheezing as I crumpled over, nearly hitting the floor had Deuce not caught me when he did. I choked, heart and lungs both shriveling up inside my chest, and I broke out into several harsh coughs, hands weakly rising to cover my mouth before my arms gave out on me. I slumped over, collapsing in the blue-haired teen’s hold, the boy hoisting my limp form up into his arms and nearly losing balance as he did so.

“Wh-What the…!?” Ace exclaimed, alarmed. Grim’s claws detached from my skirt and the cat monster fell to the ground, rolling onto his belly with a groan. “Why were you running!?”

“Did something happen!?” Deuce asked, mildly panicked as I became very unresponsive to anything that was going on. I couldn’t breathe or think. Sweat beaded down the sides of my face from how fast I had been running. "H-Hey, Eleanora! Eleanora, what's wrong?" 

“Th-There was a crazy lion man!” Grim tried to explain, sitting up. He stood on his hind legs, throwing his paws in the air. “H-He tried to eat her! We barely managed to get away!”

“Wh-What?” Deuce couldn’t believe it.

Ace was just as dumbfounded. “I know I made a joke about her getting into trouble if she took off without us, but… I didn’t think it would actually happen! What kinda lion man are you talking about, Grim!? Was it a student?”

“W-We’ll tell you the rest while we get the chestnuts! Let’s just get out of here!” Grim panicked. “Hurry! They’ll catch up if we don’t go now a-and if we don’t get enough chestnuts the tarts will be super small!” He pawed at Ace’s leg, trying to get him to walk. “Move it!”

“Yeah, yeah; buzz off, I’m going!” The ginger batted the cat monster’s paws away. Ace looked at Deuce, pausing when he saw how out-of-it I truly was. Ace frowned, hesitating slightly. “You got her...?”

An unspoken conversation passed between them. Grim, now on Ace’s shoulder, leaned forward and observed them, seeming to be part of what was being shared.

Deuce shifted his hold, letting my head rest against his shoulder, and then he nodded, his sea green eyes determined. “Yes.”

“...Good. Now let’s get out of here!” Ace rushed to the doors, pushing them open with basket in hand, Deuce following closely behind. “I don’t want to deal with whatever dude showed up in there!”

“He was a crazy lion person!” Grim exclaimed. “H-He was probably from that one dorm, uh, th-the one with all the animals ears and big, scary muscles? The, uh... the banana dorm! He was wearing that yellow vest!”

“Banana-?” Deuce began, before cutting himself off. “You mean the Savanaclaw dorm?”

Ace made a face. “There’s no way someone like that is the caretaker.”

“He threatened to take out one of Eleanora’s teeth!”

The group slowed down to a walk, having gotten a good distance away from the botanical garden, and came to a halt within the forest. Deuce frowned, looking down at me and watching as I continued to just breathe, eyes glossed over as my heart and lungs continued to work in overdrive, body feverish and shaking from the encounter. Something pained flashed in his expression, but it was gone just as fast as it came. His eyebrows furrowed.

“Is it just me,” He began, voice quiet, “or are there are a lot delinquents here at Night Raven…?”

Ace shook his head. “Who freakin’ knows? For now, let’s just focus on getting those chestnuts. Grim- you have collect twice as much since El is down right now.”

“E-Ehhh!? Why do I have to do extra work!? You’re the one Riddle’s mad at!”

“You two are a whole! If one half is down, the other has to pick up the slack!” The ginger reasoned, defending himself. “She can’t even talk! I bet you she’d be making some kind of cheesy joke right about now if she could. But she can’t, so get to pickin’! Hurry it up!”

“I can’t even use the tongs! I don’t have thumbs!”

“You got teeth!”

“The thorns will stab my mouth!”

Deuce didn’t stop their argument or scold them for their antics. The boy simply walked over to a nearby tree and set me down as gently as he could, placing a gloved hand on the top of my head. He seemed disturbed by something, but what it was I wasn’t sure. I wasn’t really sure of anything; the majority of what was being said went in one ear and out the other. I couldn’t focus. I was mostly listening to the pounding of my own heart, which still hasn’t calmed down.

“...I’m sorry.” He apologized softly. “I’m sorry…”

“Oi, Deuce!” Ace called, noticing the boy wasn’t doing anything. “Get over here and pick up some chestnuts!”

The teen jumped. He called out over his shoulder, “R-Right! I’m on my way. One second!” Deuce pat my head stiffly, as though trying to comfort me. “Just… wait here, okay? Friends take care of each other, so… I’ll do whatever I can. You just try to calm down in the meantime.”

With that said he stood up and moved over to the others, taking a pair of tongs from Ace and picking up the chestnuts off the ground. Grim carried the bucket to them, scooping up as much of the plants as he could with his claws, but it didn’t work that well. I watched tiredly, eyelids slowly dropping shut as they became too heavy to keep open, my throat sore and aching.

...

I was back in _that_ place again. Yet something was different about it now; instead of being lost in a never ending hedge maze, I was trapped in a forest with arrow signs pointing in every direction imaginable. I couldn’t speak, the thorns in my throat preventing me from doing so despite the rose itself not being visible, but I didn’t really feel the need to talk. I was simply lost, not knowing where to go.

_That boy…_

Where did he disappear to? I huffed, placing my hands on my waist and looking around, blue eyes irritable. I kicked at the dirt, making a face, and grimaced at all the nonsensical directions laid out in this place. It felt like I was running in circles trying to find the darn child. I was so close last time, too. He had been speaking to me and everything.

He was right there in my grasp back with those rose trees. He had seen me, he had acknowledged my existence. That meant he knew I was here trying to help, but… he’s too scared of his mother to let me. I sighed, feeling a bit defeated as I couldn’t even hear his sobs this time. He must have gotten quite a bit aways from me.

Where am I, anyway? Who is… this cat smiling at me from atop a tree branch?

It was a little unnerving, with his pink fur and purple stripes, and his big yellow eyes. I’ve never seen a cat wear such an impossibly big grin; it was amazing his jaw hadn’t split. _“Y… You’re a cat.”_ I found myself stating, absolutely dumbfounded. The voice I spoke with wasn’t mine, and yet I found myself using it all the same. My lips moved, but not of my own volition. It was as if I was puppet, acting on the dream’s behalf. I couldn’t stop myself even if I wanted to.

 _“I’m a Cheshire cat.”_ The striped animal told me. His tail swished about as he sang and I jumped, watching in alarm as his body seemed to disappear. _“All mimsy~ were the borogoves!”_

 _“O-Oh, wait!”_ I threw a hand out in my panic, hoping it would stop the creature. _“Don’t go! Please!?”_

The tail flicked down, then swerved up- and now a single yellow eye was peering at me mischievously.

 _“There you are!”_ He laughed loudly, giggling and grinning at me as though we had just finished playing some kind of game. His body now fully visible, the Cheshire cat cleared his throat and leaned his head back, pressing a paw to his chest. _“Thiiird chorus~!”_

Was he really about to sing? I don’t have time for this. I hurriedly waved my hands in the air, hoping we could get to the topic I wanted to talk about. This sentient creature might be able to give me the directions I needed to find the person I was looking for.

 _“Oh, no, no, no! Thank you, but…”_ I folded my hands together for a moment, then patted down the sides of my poofy skirt, trying to ease my nervousness. _“I just wanted to ask you which way I ought to go.”_

 _“Well,”_ The cat hummed, shifting his weight onto his elbows and doing a strange handstand, spreading his legs out in the air, _“that depends… on where you want to get to.”_

Of course it did. Unfortunately, I had no idea which direction the child might be. _“Oh, it really doesn’t matter, as long as I can-”_

 _“Then it really doesn’t matter,”_ He began, cutting me off with a grin, _“which way you go!”_

That… was not the answer I wanted. I watched as he stood on his hind legs and jumped up, the Cheshire cat leaning backwards off the branch and drifting slowly to the ground, gradually disappearing into nothing. To my surprise little pawprints started appearing on the dirt path before me, the invisible cat walking in circles around me as he sang.

_“And the mome raths outgrabe~!”_

Dirt suddenly picked up from the ground. Then the branch above started to shake, and trying to find the reasoning for this I looked up, my eyes growing wide as the cheshire cat reappeared. He was leaning against the trunk with elbow propped up, his left paw pressed against his chin. The Cheshire cat was wearing a sly expression, as though he knew something I didn’t.

 _“Oh, by the way…”_ He said, impossible grin widening even more. “ _...if you’d really like to know, he went…”_

The Cheshire cat raised his free paw up, pointing in one direction before quickly planting that hand on his head and standing up straight, using his other paw to gesture in the opposite direction.

_“… that way.”_

I blinked, confused. Who on earth was he talking about? The boy? I never even told the Cheshire cat who I was looking for. _“Who did?”_

The magical talking cat simply smiled at me, his yellow eyes half-lidded. Next thing I knew, we were arguing back and forth over who he was telling me about, and I found myself growing increasingly frustrated with every word shared between us. I huffed and whirled around, folding my arms over my chest. This cat was down-right infuriating.

Not at all perturbed by my behavior, the cat laughed. Picking up the head he was able to detach from the rest of his body, he offered me a suggestion. He said that if he were looking for someone he would ask the Mad Hatter. I blinked at that, glancing up at him in confusion from over my shoulder. _“Mad Hatter?”_

The cat gestured with his thumb at a nearby sign. I hesitated.

_“Um, no, no. I-I-I don’t-”_

_“Or there’s the March Hare…”_ The cat continued, interrupting me again. He pointed west. _“...in THAT direction.”_

I gave a small curtsy, deciding that course of action would be best. “ _Uh, thank you. I-I think I shall visit him.”_

The cat chuckled. _“Of course… he’s mad, too.”_

I looked up at him, completely exasperated. I’ve already had to deal with too much insanity, and I really didn’t want to get dragged into anything else. _“But I don’t WANT to go among mad people!”_ I protested.

The Cheshire cat just laughed at me. _“Oh, you can’t help that. Most everyone’s mad here. You may have noticed that I’m not quite… all there… myself!”_

He started snickering, his body slowing fading away until his stripes were all that remained, but even those disappeared eventually. All that was left was a single glimmering smile in the darkness of the woods, and before I could think of asking him any more questions the world itself started to fall apart. The rose was back in my mouth, and I found myself choking- suffocating on the thorns that filled my throat. I coughed and spat, trying to rid myself of these cursed petals as I returned to my original form, but it wasn’t working.

Thorny vines coiled around my limbs, dragging me deeper into the inky black river, coating these white clothes with red, and then suddenly I was snapping awake, sick and trembling, curled in the arms of a certain blue-haired teen that was carrying me to safety. I coughed, curling closer to the warmth, body shivering uncontrollably. “You’re awake!? I-It’s gonna be okay, alright? We’re almost to the cafeteria kitchen, so…”

It hurts. My fingers curled around my neck, where I could still feel the pain of where Leona had grabbed me earlier. I squeezed my eyes tightly shut, fingers clawing at my bow and trying to undo it to release some of the pressure on my throat. I wheezed as I did so, head heavy against Deuce’s shoulder, and Ace stumbled in his walk when he saw the dark bruises on my neck.

“Th-The hell is that!?”

Grim, from atop his head, grumbled, “That’s where the lion man grabbed her…” He smacked Ace with his paw, scolding him for not listening. “I told you he was gonna kill her!”

Deuce tightened his grip, not saying a word. Anger radiating from his form, harsh and intimidating, and his eyes flashed dangerously, but he didn’t speak. No, Deuce just kept walking- attention focused on the road ahead.

Ace shook his head, seeming a little bit irritated himself. “What an asshole… We’re gonna have to put some ice on that. Damn it; what was a freaking Savanaclaw student even doing taking a nap in the botanical garden? It’s not like he owns the place! He has no right to go attacking someone like that.”

“I dunno.” Grim said. “But he was _insane._ He was gonna eat us both, y’know!”

“Let’s just hurry to the kitchen.” Deuce said quietly, quickening his pace. “That way we can make the tart _and_ get Eleanora some ice for her neck.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter gave me some trouble, especially with the Cheshire part, so it's a bit short. XD We might need an "f" in chat for Leona, haha. If anyone finds out he made a girl cry- oof, he'll have all of Afterglow Savanna on his heels. Wonder what he was gonna say before Ruggie showed up? Hmmm. 
> 
> Also, SO CLOSE! DELINQUENT DEUCE! DELINQUENT DEUCE! HE'S SO CLOSE! ALMOST! He's this close to snapping. I'm so excited to write that bit. Bwahaha! Interesting how the "boy" didn't show up in her dreams this time, and it was just her and the Cheshire cat. I wonder why that was...? Do you guys have any theories? :D 
> 
> Also, completely different note, I was able to return to work today, which was earlier than planned, so that was nice. Woo! Surprised I remembered everything after two months in hiding. I'm proud of me. XD Have a nice day/night, you guys! Stay safe! And if you don't mind, let me know what you all think in the comments. I love reading your thoughts on the story! The support is appreciated. <3 
> 
> Down below is just me rambling about the game, so SPOILERS: 
> 
> The ending for the Scarabia episode made me so happy, haha. Like, Adeuce heard MC was in trouble and just commuted all the way back to school because they wanted to help them. Like- my poor heart, the friendship is so wholesome. AND THEN! AND THEN! THE FREAKING CHRISTMAS CARD FROM M.D. AHHHH! Why he gotta be so cute!? Just tell MC who you are already, come on Mal! They ain't gonna be scared of you, no sir. JUST LET US FRIEND YOU ALREADY PLEASE! Ugh, I have so many ideas for him when he shows up in this story. Unfortunately, at the rate this story is going, that's gonna be a while still. XD This is turning out to be a super long fic, haha. I'm so excited. Completely convinced Epel is gonna be the one to overblot, though. (Also this is random, but I had the weirdest dream where Crowley removed his mask (don't remember what for) and instead of gold his eyes were purple??? It was so weird.)


	15. A Karmic Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I freaking astral-projected myself to write this chapter. XD My love for Deuce knows no bounds, haha. I got so excited my fingers magick'd up this chapter before I realized what happened. It's about a thousand words longer than the previous chapter.

Trey was not expecting what he saw when we entered the cafeteria. He wasted no time in running to the back to fetch some ice from the freezer, wrapping them up in a small towel to press against my injured neck. I hissed in response to the coldness and the pain that flared when it touched the bruises, but I still held it in place. I opened my mouth to apologize for the trouble and thank him for the help, but my voice wouldn’t come out.

I only ended up coughing and cringing, curling further into the corner of the room I was sitting in. Deuce was beside me, hands hovering in the air awkwardly, the boy wanting to help yet not knowing how to do so. He settled for helping me hold the ice pack in place, as my arms were still a bit too numb to do so themselves. Ace explained the situation to Trey as he placed the bucket of chestnuts on the table, and the third-year looked less than pleased upon hearing what a classmate had done.

“I’ve had a couple of joint classes with him,” Trey mentioned, frowning deeply, “and that’s when he actually _shows up_ for them- which is less often than not. But from what I understand, the women in his country are highly respected. I can’t fathom why he would just attack Eleanora like that, even if she is a human…”

Grim scowled from his spot on Ace’s head, tail swishing angrily. “All she did was step on his tail, but if he didn’t want it stepped on he shouldn’t have just left it lying around like that! Who the heck goes and takes naps on the ground in the middle of a walkway, anyway?”

Trey blinked. “He was napping? Oh… that might explain it.”

Deuce glanced over at them, eyes narrowing. “How does that explain anything? He _attacked_ her!”

“That’s…” The third-year sighed. He folded an arm over his chest, pushing his glasses up with a serious stare. “That’s not what I meant, Deuce. Those from the Afterglow Savannah would never harm a woman, not intentionally anyway. I think that was the case here. If she was threatened and hurt by Leona, then it’s mostly likely due to the fact that he was still half-asleep. He wasn’t thinking straight and thought her the same as all of the other humans here. This _is_ an all boys school, after all.”

The blue-haired teen turned his head away with grimace, not forgiving Leona for his behavior. “That shouldn’t matter.” He muttered.

“Anyway,” Trey began, “you boys should start getting to work. It’s going to take some time peeling all of these chestnuts. As for you, Eleanora- you just rest there for a bit.” He smiled softly, turning to face my direction. He walked over, squatting down and resting his hands on his knees. “Do you want something to drink? I can make you a cup of warm tea, if you’d like. It might soothe your throat.”

I hated this. Eyes stinging, teeth nibbling my bottom lip, I gave a timid nod and sniffled. I felt so freaking pathetic. Trey reached over and ruffled my hair lightly, surprising me, and I blinked. I watched as he stood, the man heading over to the cabinets and pulling out a box of herbal tea.

“I left the tools on the table, Ace. We gotta roast the chestnuts before we can peel them, so we’ll just stick them in the ovens a couple at a time. They’re already preheated, so after you slit the shells you can just stick the chestnuts on the pan and set the timers once they’re inside.”

“Good thing there’s several ovens.” Ace grumbled.

Deuce reluctantly left my side to go help Ace, and he stared in dread at the large bucket of chestnuts and the small pans they were going to have to use. “There’s no end in the sight…”

Trey chuckled, boiling water in a tea kettle. “Making sweets is all about preparation. It takes time to create something delicious.”

“Yes, yes! I get it!” The ginger snapped. “Let’s hurry and get this over with!”

...It took them at least two hours to finish roasting all the chestnuts. Each pan had be set to roast for thirty-five minutes, and during that time Trey went and made marron paste. After the nuts were done roasting the boys then had to crack open each individual nut while they were still hot. That part took even longer. Halfway through the nut cracking process I was feeling a little bit better, having recovered some of my breath and calmed down just enough to think again. The herbal tea Trey made for me to drink helped a lot, and though my voice was raspy I could finally talk again.

Bored of sitting and doing nothing, I surprised the guys by taking a seat at the table and grabbing a chestnut, trying to pry it open. “H-Hey, you go sit back down.” Ace said, frowning.

“I _am_ sitting.”

“That’s not what I meant!”

I ignored him, setting the freshly released nut to the side and grabbing another, cracking that one open as well. Ace made a face and looked like he was about to say something, maybe try to trick me into leaving them into doing this, but Trey raised a hand and cut him off. “Let her be.”

Thank you! Thank you, sir, you absolute wonderful person, you.

Deuce and Ace both shared a look, and Grim stared at me uncertainly, but then they went back to peeling the chestnuts- deciding not to argue with the third-year. Trey chuckled at them, seeming to find their behavior amusing. Turning around, he watched me struggle with a chestnut for a minute before I managed to crack it open. My face lit up and I grinned slightly, proud of my meager accomplishment, and I went to peel another one.

It was so… calming.

Such an easy, repetitive process and… it was extremely distracting and relieving. It wasn’t stressful at all. It was a much needed break from all the chaos and madness I’ve been forced to endure since coming here.

“You look like you’re having fun.” A voice commented from the right, and I jumped a little- looking up with a small wince to see Trey smirking down at me. He placed a hand on the table, leaning to the side.

“O-Oh, uh…” I looked at the tool I was holding, the chestnuts I had cracked open, and then at the pile I was determined to finish peeling. Though speaking hurt and turning my head caused my neck to ache, I forced myself to look up at Trey and flash him a weak smile. “Kinda. It’s… very anxiety-reducing, I guess…”

He blinked. Then he started laughing, the sound causing the boys to pause in what they were doing. “I suppose it is, in a way! Keep up the good work.”

That encouragement was something I didn’t realize I needed until now.

I nodded, smile bright, feeling even more determined to keep peeling those chestnuts. This was the most fun I had in what felt like forever, not having to worry about anything other than the pain in my throat, and before long I found myself swinging my legs back-and-forth, a song getting stuck in my head as I peeled. The boys would occasionally glance at me every now and then, probably to make sure I wasn’t overworking myself.

“This is taking ages!” Ace whined. “Why does there have to be so many?”

“Because _you_ pissed off the dorm leader.” Deuce reminded, voice a bit more harsh than usual. “We wouldn’t be in this mess if you hadn’t eaten his tart.”

“I was _hungry!_ We had to skip dinner to take on an angry evil ink monster; what did you think I was gonna do? Starve? No thanks. Besides, that tart was delicious.”

Grim fell forward, resting his chin on the bucket with a pout. “Talk of tarts and the smell of these chestnuts are making me super hungry… urgh…”

Trey chuckled, in the middle of making the tart crust. “Just a bit longer, guys. You’re almost done peeling them all.”

Ace and Grim perked up a little at that, but Deuce remained silent. He was completely focused on his task, sea green eyes flickering with conflicted emotions and barely restrained anger. I paused midway in opening a nut when I noticed this, staring at him with furrowed brows. Was he… really that upset over what happened? Why did he care so much? We were friends, but that didn’t change the fact that he barely knew me.

Was he just being protective because I was weaker than him, or… what? Did our friendship matter that much to him? Did he have some kind of sense of justice that made him feel like he had to avenge me or whatever? It sure sounded like it earlier. I… wish I understood these guys better. Maybe at least figure out why they’re helping me so much.

I overthink things a lot, so… some clarity is nice. As Ace pointed out, I was pretty dense when it came to certain situations. _Oh!_

A thought came to me and I looked up, eyes wide. “You were half-right.”

Ace looked very confused, seeing me stare right at him. “What?”

Trying to make light of the situation, hoping it might simultaneously calm Deuce down and help myself cope, I raised a finger up in the air and joked, “You said... I would get “gobbled up” by “wolves”, remember? O-Only… it wasn’t a wolf. I almost got… “gobbled up”... by a lion. You were half-right.”

“...That was _so_ not what I meant by that, El.”

I blinked. “Okay? But… it still works, doesn’t it?”

Trey chuckled into his fist, while Ace hung his head in disappointment. “I honestly have no idea what to do with you.” The first-year lamented. “Your mindset makes no sense sometimes.”

“Says the dude who almost flicked a piece of paper at the teacher.”

“Oi! That was-!”

“We’re done peeling.” Deuce stated, cutting him off before an argument could escalate. The ginger was instantly distracted.

“We are!?” Ace’s eyes went wide and he whirled around, observing the table. All the chestnuts were peeled, save for the one I was still holding. I hurriedly cracked that open, and the ginger took that chance to stretch his arms out above his head, standing on his toes. “Yesss! Finally!”

Deuce sighed, flexing his wrists out in front of him. “My arms are sore…”

“That’s probably because you went too fast.” I said, looking down at my own handiwork. I winced. “O-Or maybe because you peeled twice as much as I did… yeah. That’s probably it.”

“Good job, everyone.” Trey complimented, laughing as he clapped his hands together. He was grinning as he placed a hand on his hip. “Just think- all this hard work will make it even tastier.”

Grim groaned, collapsing on the table completely. “I’m full from just the smell now…”

“Now, now; don’t say that.” The man scolded lightly, picking up our bowl of freshly peeled chestnuts. “We still have to make it into a paste. After that we mix in the butter and sugar, and add oyster sauce as the secret ingredient.”

Sounds accurate. Wait- “Oyster sauce?”

The boys seemed to have a similar reaction, looking just as disturbed and confused. Trey nodded seriously at us, setting the bowl down and getting a pot of fresh water, setting it to a boil. “Yes. The savoriness of the oyster sauce adds depth and richness to the cream.” He reached into the fridge, pulling out a container and grinning at us. “Tada~! Young oyster sauce with the walrus’ seal of excellence!”

Seeing our disbelieving stares, Trey continued.

“All famous patisseries use this in their sweets.”

“I... “ No. No, I don’t think that’s true. “My mom used to work in a cake shop and… I don’t think she ever used that…”

“Must not have been a very famous shop, then.” He responded easily. I faltered at that, unable to respond, as I honestly had no idea if it was or not. It was way before I was even born; I had only seen pictures of all the cakes she had baked. Deuce, finally appearing distracted from whatever was plaguing his thoughts, brought a hand up to his chin.

“But it’s such a salty sauce…”

Ace hummed, thinking about it. “I mean, even chocolate gets put into curry, so it _might_ taste pretty good...”

“I… I still don’t think…” I hesitated. Trey watched us all debate over the sauce and if it could actually be used in making sweets, and I actually found myself believing it if only because of how serious he looked. “Well, maybe, but… I don’t know…”

“I kinda wanna try it now.” Grim said, lifting his face off of the table.

The third-year started to shake, his serious expression crumbling away to reveal a huge smirk, the man laughing loudly at our reactions. “I-It’s a joke! My goodness, oyster sauce _does not_ belong in sweets! I was obviously lying.”

Ace, someone who prided himself on his acting skills, was greatly offended. “Y-You _jerk!_ Screw you! How could you say that with such a straight face!?”

“Ahaha! I-If you took a second to think about it, you’d realize!” Trey snickered into his fist, leaning against the counter. “Eleanora almost had it figured out, but you guys being so gullible had her falling for it! Pfft! You all need to learn not to accept things without a healthy amount of skepticism. Go to the library and study up.”

Grim scowled. “He acts nice, but he’s pretty twisted too, isn’t he?”

I nodded slowly, staring at the man and trying to figure if I was being insulted or not.“Agreed…”

“Anyway,” Trey said, pouring the chestnuts into boiling water, “let’s finish up the paste. Then we can start mixing in the butter and sugar. After that, we’ll use the whip cream to…!” He paused, having opened the fridge, and stared in alarm at the sight. “Oh no…”

“What’s the matter?” Ace inquired, frowning when he saw his expression.

Trey cringed, holding up the near-empty package of whipped cream. “You all gathered so many chestnuts that I got ahead of myself and made too much marron paste…” That’s not good. “We don’t have enough to mix into it.”

Deuce perked up at that, always eager to be of help. “I can go out and buy some! Is it sold at the school store?”

The green-haired man looked relieved. “Yes. You can find anything there, so… it should be. Would it be alright if I asked you to pick up a couple more things while you’re at it? Like, two cartons of milk, a dozen eggs, aluminum cups, and five cans of fruits… ah- I should write this down.”

“I don’t think I can carry that all by myself…” Deuce frowned, thinking for a moment.

Feeling a lot better after sitting down for so long and de-stressing, I saw this as my chance to do something useful. It was also a good way to spend time with him and maybe learn more about this person I called a friend. “W-Want me to come with?”

He blinked, startled. “H-Huh? But… your lungs… a-and the bruises…”

“It’s fine, it’s fine.” My throat still ached like all hell, but I wasn’t going to let him know that. I smiled at him, pushing myself up onto my feet and standing. “You need help, right? I can do it. It’s just carrying some groceries. If you’re that worried, I-I can hold the lighter stuff.”

Deuce stared at me for a long moment, eyes flickering with something dark again, before he relaxed and nodded, smiling softly. “Okay. That sounds like a good plan. I’m used to carrying heavy things while grocery shopping, anyway.”

Oh? New fun fact. We haven’t even left yet and I’m already making progress! Perfect. Grim scowled at us and stood, shaking the flour off of his fur. “I’m coming, too!” He declared. “I’m tired of cracking open chestnuts!”

I _suppose_ we can let him come with…

Grim has been behaving ever since lunch, so as long as he keeps it up I don’t see any harm in bringing him with us. Seeing me hold my arms out towards him, the cat monster began to make his way across the table, letting me pick him up for once instead of just jumping at me. I guess even he was starting to learn how to be a bit more considerate of others.

Or maybe Leona scared him so badly he forgot how to be mean himself. I don’t really know.

“...Hey, human; are you really okay?”

I blinked, looking down at Grim in surprise. When I glanced up, I was alarmed to see all the other guys watching and staring- waiting for my response. Ace was being especially intense, his red eyes boring into my own as if daring me to try and lie to everyone. “It’s…”

Deuce was starting to look upset again. I shifted my arms, repositioning Grim so he could be held in a more comfortable way, and after a moment of hesitant thought I flashed them all a smile.

“I-It’s just a few bruises.” I answered, shrugging nonchalantly, pretending not to hear the rasp in my voice. “They’ll heal.”

“...True.” Trey said, frowning deeply. He handed Deuce the grocery list and a couple of madol, and then pushed up his glasses as he turned to face me, leaning against the counter and folding his arms over his chest. “But what about everything else? It isn’t every day that someone gets their throat _crushed,_ nonethelessby a lion.Leona is terrifying. You don’t have to hide it.”

“I-I’m not…” I faltered, looking down and nibbling on my bottom lip. “It’s just… that’s…”

My mind went blank.

“There’s… too much.” The ache in my throat got worse as the emotions started to bubble up, and though my eyes stung I continued to smile at them, desperate to pretend everything was alright. “I-If I… try to talk about one… th-the rest will… come tumbling out.”

It hurts. It feels like there’s shattered glass stuck in my throat. All I can remember is the pair of inhuman emerald eyes staring me down, full of fury and hate and the intent to kill. I’ve never felt… such cold blooded rage before.

Trey frowned. “Too much, huh?” I nodded quietly. The third-year sighed and straightened his back, pressing a hand to the counter. “Well, I won’t force you. Just don’t think about hiding anymore than what’s necessary. These brats are worried about you.”

“Brats-!? Hey!” Ace whirled his head around, glaring. “You’re the one who told everyone to put oyster sauce in the tart!”

The third-year snorted. “And you’re the one who burnt the statue and broke the chandelier. Honestly, it’s no wonder why Riddle pities her.”

“You little-!”

Deuce hurried over, awkwardly placing a hand on my shoulder and trying to guide me away from the two bickering teens. “Let’s hurry to the store. We have to pass through Main Street to get there, but it shouldn’t take too long.”

“O-Okay.”

With the list and money in his hand, I followed Deuce out of the kitchen and into the hallways, where we then left the school building. I hadn’t been down Main Street since the time I had to clean it, which felt like an eternity ago after all the drama that had occurred, but… it was only yesterday, I think. Jeez.

“It’s hard to believe… we’ve only known each other for a day.”

Deuce paused at that, looking down at me in surprise, before focusing his attention forwards. “...It really _has_ only been a day, hasn’t it? It feels like forever ago that we fought that ink monster…”

“Or when Ace tried to skip out on detention…”

A grin started to curl onto his lips. “Or when I found you wandering the hallways all lost.”

I looked at the seven statues lining the street right outside the school shop and campus gates. It was really hard trying not to laugh, my throat aching with each word spoken. So much has happened to us all in just the span of two days. In a much better mood compared to a few hours ago, I moved closer to Deuce and linked an arm with his, beaming. “You were like an angel! I was seriously freaking out.”

He chuckled. “I could tell. Ace isn’t exactly… the nicest of people.”

“You can say that again. He acted all nice when we first met, but-”

“But then he turned into a total jerk!” Grim whined. “He started insulting me!”

I raised eyebrows, making a face as we approached the statues. “Yeeaah, and then y’all burned the statue. Oh, look; the queen herself.” The group came to a halt, observing the Great Seven curiously. “Freaking- Ace and Grim started fighting, and when I tried to stop them Ace used his wind magic and threw me across the ground!”

Ow, ow, not so loud. Oof.

“He was _such_ a jerk. But… now he’s kinda not. I mean, he still acts like a jerk sometimes, but I think that’s just him.”

“H-He threw you?” Deuce was alarmed. “And you still went after him for skipping detention?”

“...Maybe. It was a… really bad day. He made me angry.”

The blue-haired teen sighed. “I should have known...”

“But hey! We all get along now, right? And the statue seems to be all fixed up now.”

“...Yes. She does look a lot less charred.” Deuce commented, looking up at the Queen of Hearts. He observed her snobbish grin for a moment. “The headmaster must have used some sort of reparation magic on it.”

I nodded at his words as we started to walk again. I would never say it out loud, but that statue was definitely the source of several headaches. In all the weird dreams I’ve been having, I’m pretty sure she’s been mentioned several times. I can’t remember by who or why, but she was. It made me wonder about what happened earlier with Riddle.

They had all been talking about the rules set by the Queen of hearts. That conversation left me feeling nauseous and sick, but hearing Riddle talk about it only made me feel worse. Then, without any understanding as to why I did so, I found myself chasing after him- as if… scared he would just disappear.

I still didn’t know why I had done that. Why I felt like that.

Was… Was he in my dreams? Was I somehow imagining him as the Queen of Hearts? No, that isn’t right. There was something else about him, about all of this. The reason why he was so strict and intent on following every little law that the tyrant ruler had made… just what was it? There has to be an explanation- _there has to be._

Maybe I can just ask him? That would be the easiest thing to do.

Oh, speaking of Riddle- I just realized something. He had said he would give me a tour once he had the time, the school store being the main place he was going to show me, but now I was heading there with Deuce and Grim. Hopefully Riddle won’t be too upset when he finds out… I would rather not make him angry. There were still a whole bunch of areas of the school that I still don’t know about, after all, so… maybe he could just show me those places instead?

Yeah. That sounded like a plan. Perfect.

I just have to make sure not to do anything that’ll tick him off in the meantime.

“We’re here.” Deuce said, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked up in time for us to walk through a door, the boy calling out our arrival. “Pardon us!”

He stumbled, coming to a halt in the doorway, sea green eyes wide.

“Whoa… this place is incredible!”

That was one way to put it. I knew absolutely nothing about this world of magic, but what little I did know from fairy tales and movies back in my world made it clear that this place was _full_ of some baaaad juju. I wasn’t sure if it was the shelf full of suspicious looking potions and ethers, or if it was the totally haunted piano sitting in the corner with a giant stuffed spider stuck inside of it, but something told me we should probably stay away from this place as much as possible.

“Grimoires, crystals…” Deuce was in complete awe. He was wandering all over the place, causing me to stumble after in fear of being left behind. I did _not_ want to get kidnapped because of some creepy cryptid hiding in the shadows of a voodoo shop. The boy paused in front of several shrunken heads, all of which were hanging from a string. “What kind of taxidermy is this?”

“N-Not really taxidermy at all, I think.” I stammered.

Grim looked around in disbelief. “Do… they really sell whipped cream here?”

Suddenly a voice called out, a pair of hands clapping together. “Hey there, my lost little demons~! How goes it?” We turned to see a man approaching us from the front of the store, the stranger grinning ear-to-ear.

He was quite handsome, with dark skin and hair, and some very vibrant red eyes that almost seemed to glow due to the black eyeshadow and liner he was wearing. White paint dotted his cheekbones and his throat- going all the way down to the visible part of his chest in the shape of bones. Even his shirt was decorated with a ribcage, committing to the undead aesthetic, and attached to his stitched-up tophat was a little skull. He was dressed in several different shades of purple and black, and although he appeared friendly… he was probably the person running the voodoo in this place. The string of sharp teeth dangling around his neck only made me more convinced of that.

The stranger waved exaggeratedly and doing a little bow. “Welcome to _Mr. S’s Mystery Shop!_ What can I get for you today?” He lifted his head, flashing a toothy grin. “Perhaps a charm for traversing uncharted lands? Or maybe the mummy of an ancient king? What about some cursed tarot cards? You name it, we got it!”

Grim jolted in my grasp, claws digging into my arms. “Geh…! H-He scared me.”

“Um, we would like the things written here…” Deuce, ever the brave soul, spoke. He handed the list to the man, who took it. Grim grinned, getting over his previous fear.

“And some cans of tuna!”

“No!” Deuce scowled, glaring at Grim. “We don’t need any tuna.”

“Oh, what’s this?” The man grinned, reading what was on the list. “Whipped cream, eggs... a nice _sweet_ line-up.”

He winked at us.

“Okay! Give me one second and~ here we are!” The man wandered off, then returned with several floating grocery items. He set them on the payment counter with a dramatic flourish, spinning on his heel and snapping his fingers. “Sorry about the wait, but it’s all ready and set to go!”

“H-He actually had them!” Deuce gasped.

We hurried to the counter, where the blue-haired teen proceeded to pay for everything using the money Trey gave him. The man, who we actually learned was named Sam, bagged everything and spoke excitedly, apparently being quite the extrovert and salesman. He kept attempting to get Deuce to latch onto whatever new sales were going on, but Deuce continued to refuse as politely as he could.

“They’re a bit heavy. You got them? If you order now you can get a one, one hundredth sized floating platter to carry your purchases for thirty percent off!”

“What’s that!?” Grim exclaimed, climbing onto my shoulder and leaning over excitedly. “It sounds so cool!”

“Sounds shady.” I deadpanned. I was slowly starting to detest magic, what with not having any aptitude for it myself and having been threatened by it more than once already. “Intriguing, but shady.”

Deuce fervently shook his head, grabbing a couple of bags. “W-We’re fine, thank you! Grim, Eleanora, let’s go!” I blinked in surprise at his urgency, but grabbed the bag full of the fruit cans and whipped cream, and took off after him.

Grim whined loudly, disliking the fact that we had to leave so soon. “But I want to look at all the other cool stuff he has! Deuuuuce!”

“It’s time to leave.” Deuce hissed.

Sam laughed and waved us off, not seeming to take any offense. “Okay, okay; take care, my little demons! Make sure you come by again soon, alright!? Bye-bye~!” He watched as we left, and as the door closed behind us Deuce slowed down and came to a halt before the statues, sighing heavily.

“That was close…”

Grim scrunched his nose up. “You’re so stingy.”

He whirled around and glared. “Who are you calling stingy? Urk- crap. Eleanora, those cans...” His expression softened. Deuce stepped forward, startling me by holding his hand out. “Here, let me carry them. Our deal was that you’d only get to carry the light stuff, remember?”

“O-Oh, right.” I completely forgot. I awkwardly switched with Deuce, letting him carry the cans and milk jugs, while I held the aluminum cups, whipped cream, and eggs. “Sorry.”

Deuce chuckled, shaking his head. “Don’t be. I told you I was used to carrying heavy things while grocery shopping, didn’t I?”

“...You totally did, actually. Huh.” I hummed at that, only to flinch. Ignoring the pain, I looked up at the taller teen curiously, wondering what all he liked to do. We started walking again, and I took special care to hold the eggs in a way that would ensure they wouldn’t get crushed or broken. “Um, d-do you like to go shopping a lot or… do you just buy a bunch of stuff whenever you do go to the store?”

“The second one.” He said, sighing and shaking his head. “My mom always buys way more than what we need during sales, so I always end up getting stuck carrying all the heavy stuff. Since I’m the only boy in our family, it became my job to take care of anything that required physical strength.”

Oooh. Okay, that makes sense. Did he have siblings then? I don’t think he chimed in when we were all talking about our families earlier. He’s only ever mentioned his mother.

“Ah, I’ve just been talking about myself.” Deuce said, scolding himself. “My apologies.”

“No, no; you’re fine.” I smiled up at him. “I think it’s great that you help around the house. Every time I tried to do anything it would end in disaster; the most I could do were the simple chores. You know- like dishes, vacuuming… although to be fair, I did only learn how to do laundry recently. Great timing, too, apparently, seeing as I got kidnapped through space itself.”

He laughed at that.

“But, like- talk about yourself, man. We’re friends, and as friends I think we should know more about each other than just our names. Besides, I like hearing you talk.” I grinned, reaching over and elbowing him with the arm used to carry the aluminum cups. “Much more than Ace, anyhow. You’re such a gentleman; your mom should be proud of herself for raising you so well! I think the fact that you love her so much is a good sign of that.”

“N-No, that’s…” He hesitated. Deuce closed his eyes for a moment, then looked away- as if guilty. “That’s not true. I’m not a gentleman.”

I furrowed my brows, noticing that the look he was wearing now was almost identical to the one he wore back in the cafeteria when we were talking about our mothers in the lunchline. Back when he mentioned she was always worrying about him. But that was just because mothers, good _caring_ mothers, worried in general about their children- right?

“I… always made her…”

Suddenly Deuce grunted and stumbled back, and I yelped as he crashed into me. Grim shouted as we fell, and before anyone knew what had happened the groceries were all on the ground and the eggs… were smashed.

“Shit!” Deuce cursed, scurrying to observe the contents. “Over half of them got destroyed…! They’re all over the bag now!”

Oh no. No, no, no.

I screwed up. Why is this always happening!? I started to panic, thinking of all the money that had just been wasted, and started stammering apologies, trying to pick up the mess as if that would help savage _something_ , but I started to choke on my own words and the feeling in my throat worsened- causing me to cough and wheeze, body starting to shake. “I-I’m so… I’m so sorry! I-I-I didn’t mean to- this just- I-!

His eyes went wide and before my attack could get any worse he reached out and grabbed my hands, stopping me from trying to pick up anything. “Breathe! Eleanora, breathe.”

“I-I was- I was being careful, I swear-!”

That when we heard it. “Haaah? Watch where you’re going, you punk!”

Deuce, Grim, and I all turned to see the delinquents from the cafeteria. The one with silver hair, the leader of the little duo, faltered when he saw us, recognition flashing across his face. No way… what was this? Is it the bad juju I mentioned earlier? Was this karma coming back at me for making them angry before? It had to be.

“You’re the brats who wrecked the egg in my carbonara!” The third-year accused. Rage flashed on his features and he stepped forward, cracking his knuckles. “Do you have any idea what kind of _hell_ Master Crewel put me through because of you? Huh!? I couldn’t eat lunch!”

“Man, you guys just can’t catch a break can you?” His redheaded buddy exclaimed, grinning. “To think we’d see you again like this… heh. You should know better than to bump into upperclassman like that!”

Deuce slowly released my hands and stood, his expression darkening considerably as he turned to face them. “You were the ones who jumped out from behind the corner,” He stated, voice low, “and at lunch, even though your egg was perfectly edible, you still came to pick a fight- despite the fact that _you_ were the ones who bumped into Eleanora.”

What? They… were the ones who bumped into me? I wasn’t in their way?

“And just now,” Deuce continued, narrowing his eyes, “you came at me out of nowhere and destroyed over half of our eggs.”

Grim nodded at his words, raising a paw up in the air. “Yeah, that’s right! You’re the ones who started it!” 

“Haaah?” The silver-haired delinquent exclaimed. “Are you sayin’ this is _our_ fault?”

“Yes.” Deuce responded bluntly, glaring as he struggled to keep his voice at a level volume. “So, please, pay for the eggs; and apologize to the chickens, too.”

The redheaded delinquent raised a brow, grinning at us as he placed a hand on his hip. “You’re getting awfully worked up over _eggs_.”

“...What?”

“It’s not like they hit the ground, right?” I froze upon hearing that, the man turning his gaze to me with a mocking grin. He was… using my own words against us. That was exactly what I had said to him before in the cafeteria- back when they were threatening me. He was twisting my defense into offense, and using it to bully Deuce. “You shouldn’t sweat the small stuff.”

“Yeah!” His buddy said, snickering. “We saved you the trouble of breaking them!”

Deuce twitched, his leather bound fingers digging hard into his arms as his muscles tensed. Gritting his teeth and lowering his head, the boy mumbled something too quiet to make out. When the delinquents only continued to laugh, something inside of Deuce seemed to snap, and I watched in horror as one of his fists went flying through the air.

“This ain’t something to _laugh_ about!” He roared, sending the redhead sprawling onto the ground with a punch. The third-year whimpered and curled onto his side, clutching his wounded jaw, and his buddy stared with wide eyes at what just happened. Deuce stepped forward, completely and utterly unhinged. “None of you get to make decisions for us, ya hear!? Those eggs you smashed… instead of becoming baby chicks, they were gonna make us a delicious tart! But now their lives were _wasted!_ Their sacrifices _in vain!_ Do you get what I’m sayin’!? Do ya!?”

The redhead scooted back, tears welling up in his eyes. “Wh… What’s your problem!?”

“My problem…?” Deuce echoed, slouching over with wild eyes. His serious demeanor was lost, replaced by his darker personality. So much so I feared there might not be much _Deuce_ left in there. Cracking his knuckles and popping his neck, the boy flexed his arms out as he readied himself for a proper fistfight. “If you don’t wanna pay up for those eggs you broke… then I’ll punch you six times instead! One for each egg!”

“Wh-What!?” The silver-haired delinquent was more than a little alarmed.

Deuce glared maliciously, charging forward. “Grit your teeth, assholes! Hraaaaah!”

I flinched and ducked down, covering my face to avoid watching what happened next, but the anxiety of only hearing the noises and not seeing the action- the consequences- had me peering between my fingers, wincing every time a hit was landed on the upperclassmen. For all their tough talk, they didn’t stand a chance against Deuce. It was much less a fight and more of a one-sided beating.

“I-I knew he was strong, but…” Grim was in shock. “...not like this!”

His darker personality had been seen several times through the short time I’ve known him. Even Ace had commented on it. But for it to be _this_ morbid and scary…? For him to be this skilled at fighting? The way he moved showed he had a lot of experience, as he was an extremely capable fighter. The upperclassman didn’t stand a chance.

Deuce landed a punch in the silver-haired delinquent’s gut, and as the man choked on his own saliva the blue-haired teen raised his knee up and rammed it into his jaw. The delinquent went falling onto his back, spitting blood, and whimpered.

This is…

This is too much. I don’t like this. This… isn’t the Deuce I know.

Or… maybe this was the true Deuce all along? I knew next to nothing about him, after all.

I squeezed my eyes shut when the teen ran at the redhead, seeing him trying to scramble away and kicking him in the side as a result. The delinquent rolled onto his back with a grunt, and then Deuce was straddling him- pinning him down as he delivered punch after punch after punch. The boy who I had believed to be well-mannered and polite was not at all perturbed or bothered by the bloody nose or busted lip that now decorated his victim; no, he was too angry. Too upset.

Deuce wanted _vengeance_ for those broken eggs and he was going to get it.

“S… Stop…”

Please, don’t kill them. Don’t break them. My lips curled back and I choked, watching as he focused his attention on the silver-haired delinquent, removing himself from the redhead and walking towards that person instead. Deuce rammed his foot down on his opponent’s chest, his sea green eyes almost acidic in his rage.

“Apologize!” He demanded. “Apologize to Eleanora! To the baby chicks! To everyone!”

When Deuce didn’t get a response, he raised his foot up and stomped on the man harder.

“I said _apologize!”_

“I-I’m sorry!” The silver-haired man cried.

The redhead spat out some of the blood that had gotten in his mouth, rolling onto his front and struggling to push himself onto his knees. “I-I’m sorry, too! I’m sorry to all the chicks in the world!”

“And her!” Deuce pointed in my direction, snarling at them. “Apologize to Eleanora! Look at her face and beg for her forgiveness! Beg for her to forgive you after what you did to her!”

I sat there, completely horrified, as the delinquents looked at me as best they could given their injuries and positions, tears stinging their bloody and bruised faces. “I-I’m sorry…! I-I’m so sorry!”

“F-Forgive us! Please!”

“Show us mercy!”

Deuce continued to glare at them, digging his heel deeper into their backs, and after a minute I choked- realizing what I had to do if I wanted this to end. Discarding the bags on the ground, I forced myself onto my feet, inhaling shakily as the pain in my throat threatened to suffocate me. “I… I… forgive you…”

The foot on the silver-haired delinquent’s back was removed and the third-year scurried away, only to collapse onto his rear as he looked fearfully up at his attacker. Deuce glared him and his friend down. “You heard her, so get out of here! And the next time you eat eggs, apologize a hundred times- you bunch of _dumbasses!”_

“U-Uwaaaah!” The redhead scrambled onto his feet, running for it. “Y-You’re insane!”

“Y-You punched us way more than six times, you liar!” His silver-haired friend whimpered, crawling away until he could stand and run. “You’re a monster!”

Deuce clicked his tongue at them, cracking his knuckles again. “Cowards…”

Though scared of what might happen if I did so, I forced myself to approach the blue-haired teen, tentatively reaching a hand out. My brown eyes were full of uncertainty and fear as I pinched his bloodied jacket, tugging on it to gain his attention. “D… Deuce…?”

“Haah?” He turned his head, still speaking in that rough and gruff tone. “What is it? You hurt?”

I couldn't find the words to respond. Grim looked at Deuce, heavily disturbed. “Wh-What’s gotten into you?”

The blue-haired teen was confused for a moment. When the realization hit, his eyes widened and he groaned, burying his face in his hands as he broke out of his darker personality. “I-I screwed up!” Deuce said, closing his eyes with a pained expression. “I vowed that I would _definitely_ be an honors student this time…! I promised myself…”

I hesitantly loosened my hold on his bloody jacket, letting go and watching him turn to face us. “Wh-What do you mean? Why did you- uh, what was…”

“What _was_ that, Deuce?” Grim demanded.

Deuce struggled to compose himself, taking a deep breath. He dragged a hand down his face, getting a bit of blood on his cheek, and when he spoke it was with a quiet, ashamed voice. “Back in middle school… all I ever did was screw around. I skipped school nearly every day and got into fights left-and-right. I disrespected all of my teachers, hung out with sketchy upperclassman, and… I bleached my hair to death.”

He crossed his arms over his chest, digging his fingers into his arms- as if to comfort himself. The boy was clearly reliving some awful moments of his life, and as terrible as what just happened was… I felt bad for him. I can’t even begin to imagine what kinds of terrible things he must have done if _this_ was what he was capable of, but… I was also so very relieved to see him back to normal. The normal I knew him as.

Deuce was acting so horrified, so disgusted with himself. I… I hated it. I didn’t like him acting like this. I wanted him to go back to arguing with Ace over petty things, to go back where he was smiling and laughing, and even joining in sometimes with the ginger’s stupid antics.

“You… probably don’t even know what it is, but… I even ran all over the place riding a magical wheel.” Deuce looked at me with sad eyes, expression grim. “I was… a terrible person who went so far as to… to use magic to lord over those who couldn't.”

I didn’t know what to say.

Grim shook his head, wondering just how far this person’s personality switch could go. “You went full _bad boy_ on those jerks, Deuce!”

Deuce looked away at that. “Yeah. I’m not… the angel you guys think I am. I hurt people, Eleanora. What I did to those delinquents just now- it pales in comparison to the stuff I did back in middle school. I’m a monster, just like they said.”

“...No.”

He blinked, surprised. I reached out, grabbing onto his sleeves and looking up at him with teary eyes.

“You are _not_ a monster!”

“I am. I… even made my mother cry.” I had no words to say to that, stunned silent by the sheer _agony_ in his voice. “One night I saw her hiding away in tears, talking to my grandmother on the phone. She kept asking, “was the way I raised him wrong”? “Would it have been better if he had both parents”? But she was wrong…”

Deuce curled his hands into fists, squeezing his eyes shut. He looked like he was about to cry himself. I could feel him shaking beneath his uniform and I found my grip tightening on his sleeves.

“It was all me! Mom did her best and I ignored all of it! I-I was the one who picked fights and bullied all the younger kids, and it was me who did nothing but cause trouble! My mom did everything she could to raise me, to love me, a-and I just…” He inhaled deeply. “I just hurt her. I made her worry. So, that's why… when the carriage from Night Raven came to take me away and I saw how happy she was… I vowed to never make her cry again.”

His fists dropped, hands going slack as all the fight left him.

“I… vowed to become an honors student that she can be proud of! But then I do this and- _shit!”_ He cursed, berating himself for his behavior.

I-I think I understand him a bit better now. Maybe. This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind when I offered to go shopping with him, but he was who he was and there was no changing that. The past is the past. It’s just… a lot to process.

Grim was thinking about it, too. “But… does being an honors student mean you have to grin and bear everything?”

“Huh?” Deuce lifted his head, surprised. I blinked, turning to look at the cat monster in confusion. I wasn’t expecting that from him of all people.

“If you ask me, those jerks deserved another ten punches!” From my shoulder, Grim pumped his paws in the air. “I was gonna do it myself, but you scared them off before I could even try.”

“That’s…” The boy hesitated.

I lowered my head, pondering what to say. There was so much that just happened; so much that keeps happening. It was near impossible trying to keep up. But… what I do know is that Deuce… isn’t a monster. What he did isn’t something that should be easily forgiven, if forgiven at all, but he was trying to change. And the person I know- the boy in front of me- is someone who has helped me time and again despite my stubbornness and pride.

The person I knew… was a boy who loved his mother. Who was bad at studying, but did his best to take notes anyway. Who mimicked a professor and his cat to try and understand the lesson being taught. Who carried me around constantly, despite how weird or embarrassing it must be, because he was worried about me.

“A-All those times you got angry earlier…” I began, looking up at him, brown eyes meeting wide sea green. “It was because you cared, right? I-I don’t… deal well with violence, but… repression is even worse. Repression… is what makes you lose all feeling a-and guilt and emotion. You shouldn't shut your anger away. It's impossible to change like that- you'll only make things worse. And... while I can't truly know exactly what you're feeling, I... I do know one thing.”

I tried for a smile, recalling every anime I could possibly imagine to help me get through this tense situation, releasing the sleeves I was holding and grabbing onto his hands instead. I held them up for the stunned teenager see, as if to try to prove my next point.

“These aren’t… the hands of a terrible person. You’ve… helped me so many times, Deuce. E-Even when I’ve seemed ungrateful o-or selfish, or frustrated. You only hurt those jerks because… because of what they did. A-and, like, I mean, you shouldn’t go about picking fights with everyone you see, but… wh-when it comes to bullies like that… sometimes it just… takes a good hit or two to set ‘em straight, y’know?”

“Yeah!” Grim cheered. “Just don’t kill ‘em.”

“Mm-hm. That way… it’s okay. Honors students are allowed to get angry, too. You just have to find a healthier way to deal with that anger.” My voice was getting hoarser the more we spent talking, and I knew I was going to have to either sweet talk a certain third-year into making me another cup of tea or figuring out where the tea bags were hiding so I could make it myself, but I needed this person to feel better. I was awful when it came to comforting people, so it was taking everything I had to try to do it now. As such, I found myself trying to tack a joke on at the end. “And, I mean, I’m still totally gonna think of you as an angel, because you kinda are when in comparison to Ace. But now I know that you’re more of a... fallen one, if that makes any sense.”

Deuce stared, as if seeing us in a new light. His shoulders relaxed and he curled his fingers around mine, smiling softly with misty eyes. “You…” The boy started to chuckle, both in amusement and in relief, and suddenly I found myself being tugged forward. I went still as Deuce wrapped his arms around me tightly, startled by the action as this was a very much _not_ him thing to do. “Thanks. You and Grim both, you guys just…”

He pulled away, expression warm.

“I’m glad I met you.”

Grim scrunched his nose up. “Now _you’re_ being the cheesy one.”

Deuce laughed at that, bringing a hand up to his head and ruffling his hair. “You think so? I guess it’s more than just Eleanora’s disaster human luck that’s contagious. But… that’s okay, I think. At least now those baby chicks can rest in peace…”

Oooh, this is gonna break him. “Y-Yeah, about that…”

He blinked. “Hm?”

I bit my lip, fiddling with my fingers anxiously. “Th… The eggs are kinda… maybe… y’know… unfertilized? So there won’t be any baby chickies…”

Deuce recoiled so hard I think the universe could feel it, his entire life shattering before his eyes at this realization. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DELINQUENT DEUCE HAS FINALLY ARRIVED! WOOO! Hopefully the battle scene met expectations. XD I enjoy writing them, though they're not exactly my strong suit. Delinquent Deuce sparks much joy, but silly chicken loving Deuce sparks even more joy. Super sweet characters going completely unhinged is probably my favorite thing, horrible as it sounds. Riddle is gonna be fuuuun~~~!
> 
> MC: Appears  
> Game Characters: "Oh look. It's free therapy."
> 
> ANYWAY, Trey is the Heartslabyul Big Brother/Mom Friend forever XD I apologize if the "cooking process" isn't exact; I'm not a chef so I googled some stuff, hopefully it still works...? 
> 
> Have a nice day/night, you guys! :D And thank you so much for all the kudos and comments! I love hearing your guys' thoughts.


	16. Another Riddle Unsolved

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, some you may have noticed this chapter was posted, deleted, and then re-posted. Yeah... I didn't like how this ended, so I deleted it and rewrote it. Haha... sorry. T_T Hope you guys don't mind.

We had to return to the store and explain the situation to Sam, who was thankfully rather understanding, and we were allowed to replace the eggs without issue. I was still mildly freaking out over what happened with the delinquents, brain struggling to completely process the backstory I had been told by Deuce, but I tried not to show it.

What he did in his past shouldn’t bother me; he was a good person at heart, and him trying to avenge the baby chickens he had believed to have been murdered proved that. Heck, our first meeting was him asking if I needed help because he thought I was lost, and before I had been summoned to this world I even had friends that used to get into fights all the time.

The only difference is that… well…

I was never actually witness to them.

Wait...

I squinted, staring off in the distance as I thought about the few people I had befriended back when I was still in high school; way before I graduated and lost contact with them all. Every person I met and/or befriended had been either angry or violent, though never at me, and they would get fairly protective. The majority of them had actually behaved rather motherly towards me. The same thing repeated when I got my job as a cashier, but I never had much contact with anyone outside of work.

Then I got summoned here… and in just two days I’ve already gone and befriended a two-faced ginger, a rebellious talking cat, and an ex-delinquent.

A… Am I a trouble magnet just as Lilia predicted!? Have I always been like this!? How hadn’t I noticed!? I held the grocery bags close, mind blown by this discovery. Do I just naturally gravitate towards the insanity? Is that why the magic mirror grabbed me?

Holy frick.

“Eleanora?” Deuce’s voice snapped me out of it and I looked up at him, eyes wide. “Do you think you can get the door?”

“Huh? O-Oh, yes! Right, sorry.” I was so out of it; I hadn’t even realized we made it back to the school building. I stumbled over to the door, leaning over to push the doors open, Grim helping by pressing his paws against the handle. Deuce- who had his arms completely full- walked through. I followed after, the boy helping by using his foot to keep it open. “Thanks.”

He smiled, clearly trying to distract himself from the egg reveal. “Of course. Come on, let’s go get these to the kitchen. Ace is probably suffering without us.”

“Eh, he kinda deserves it.” He really shouldn’t have been running his mouth. I was still bitter about that. “If he just… paid attention and didn’t feel the need to… to i-insult…”

“Eleanora?” Deuce grew alarmed when I started coughing, my face scrunching up in pain and body hunching over slightly. He hurriedly set the bags of cans and milk jugs down, rushing over and wrapping an arm around the front of my shoulders, Grim jumping off and landing onto the ground, both guys staring with big eyes. “M-Maybe you should stop talking for a while. Your throat still hasn’t recovered a-and there could be internal damage we don’t know about! We should put more ice on it. Come on.”

He grabbed the bags and slid them on one arm, keeping me balanced with his other, and with Grim trailing behind us we made our way to the cafeteria kitchen where Ace and Trey were waiting, having finished making the tart crusts while we were gone. Trey appeared relieved to see us approach with the groceries. “You’re finally back.”

“It’s about time!” Ace exclaimed. A smile crossed his face, as though he were genuinely glad to see us. “It took you long enough. Er, wait- what’s wrong?”

Trey stepped forward, taking the groceries I was carrying, and Deuce set his own on the counter before guiding me over to a chair. The third-year frowned, seeing my hands coiled gingerly around my throat. “What happened, Deuce?”

“Eleanora talked a bit too much.” He explained. “I think she just needs to rest a bit and get something to drink.”

“I’ll make another glass of tea. Ace- you get started on cutting up that white chocolate!”

“Urk-! Because you didn’t make me do enough while they were gone…” The ginger slumped over, hanging his head. “Riddle better like this tart. I’mma be pissed otherwise.”

Grim climbed down from my head to my shoulder, and pressed a paw to my cheek with a frown. I blinked and looked at him, eyebrows furrowed. Something flickered in his blue eyes and I watched in confusion as he turned away, the cat monster hopping onto the table with an irritable flick of his tail. I jolted when a finger tapped my shoulder, and before I knew what was happening I had a warm cup of tea in my hands and Trey was wandering away, giving instructions to the boys.

As much as I hated it, talking and moving was too much for me right now. I could only sit there and sip at the tea Trey had brewed for me, holding more ice to my throat, and watch as they all finished up the desserts. The white chocolate cream looked especially delicious, which was weird since I wasn’t much for sweets, but through all this pain I was in the melted chocolate sounded _really_ good.

With the tart and cocoa almond cream baked (cream otherwise known as marron paste) all that was left to do was cover it with the white chocolate cream, add in some marron glacé, cover that up with the cream, and let the tarts cool in the fridge for about an hour. When it was done the boys were able to finish them up by icing the tart with marron paste and topping it all off with a few extra marron glacés.

But then…

Trey moved closer to the table, grabbing a sifter and pouring some kind of ingredient on it, shaking it lightly over the tarts. “Dust the tops with powder sugar… and… voila!”

“It’s done!” Ace and Grim cheered, throwing their arms up in the air dramatically. “Whoo!”

Deuce, on the other hand, sighed in complete exhaustion. Sometime in the middle of all of the baking his expression had soured again, memory of earlier events coming back to mind. He lazily waved a fist in the air. “It’s done. Whoo…”

Ace noticed this behavioral change and frowned, looking at him- concern flashing in his red eyes. “Did… something else happen while you guys went out shopping?”

I set my glass of the tea down and lowered the wrapped towel from my throat, looking at the ginger. Voice incredibly raspy and quiet, I spoke up. “I… I might have... ruined his childhood.”

“Wha-!?” Ace was alarmed. “What did you do!?”

“...Chick shock.”

Deuce closed his eyes, as if ashamed of himself. “For sixteen years… I earnestly believed chickens would hatch from those eggs…”

Trey didn’t completely understand what was going on, but he pieced together enough to find the situation amusing. He snickered into his fist, watching as Ace raised an eyebrow at the blue-haired teen. Deciding it would be best to leave his classmate alone, Ace turned away and blinked, baffled by what he just heard. The ginger then sighed, slumping down into a chair and stretching out his legs.

“You know what?” Ace said, leaning his head back. “I don’t care. Making sweets is exhausting… they take _forever_ to bake.”

A sudden knock on the doors had everyone jumping, the group turning around to see Cater waving a hand as he let himself into the kitchen. “Is the tart finished? Oooh~ good job, guys! The decorations are super cute!” He wandered over, pulling out his phone with a big grin. “It’s totally magicamegrammable! Let me take a pic real quick, ‘kay?”

He held his phone up, snapping a few shots of the finished products.

Ace was not happy. “What did you even come here for!?”

“I came to check on my adorable freshman!” Cater explained with a wink, pressing his index finger to his cheek. “You all were working so hard~ I had to see you in action.” The older teen started to snicker, seeing the flour coating their uniforms. “You guys look beat! Ahahaha!”

Trey shook his head at his friend, but smiled nonetheless. He pulled out a long kitchen knife and some plates, setting them on the table. “Things you aren’t used to tire you out quickly. And when you’re tired… the best remedy is to eat something sweet! So why don’t you all go ahead and try one of the mont blancs we made? The other can be given to Riddle.”

Cater, Grim, and Ace all cheered. Meanwhile Deuce was making his way back over to me, checking on my bruises and scowling when he saw how dark they were. “I’ll get you more ice.” He murmured, taking the mostly watered-down towel from me and heading over to the freezer. Cater blinked when he saw Deuce with the towel, and he was just about to glance in my direction when Ace caught his attention.

“You came in here just so you could eat the tart, didn’t you?” The first-year accused.

Cater laughed. “Now, now… don’t put it that way! Think of me more like the taste-tester. We don’t want to feed Riddle something that will give him a stomachache, do we? But since Trey was here to help out… well, I have high hopes.”

Ace scrunched his nose up at the strawberry blond, unimpressed. He looked like he was about to say something else, most likely something mean, when a piece of tart appeared in front of his face. Trey smirked at him, holding it out to him. “Go on now. You worked hard on this; eat up.”

“R-Right… thanks.” He awkwardly took the plate, grabbing a fork and grabbing a part of the tart. 

Tart… huh? Were tarts and cake the same thing? It seemed like tarts were some kind of weird love child between pies and cakes. It had all the sweetness that’s normally preserved for cakes, but the way the crust works is more like a pie. You bake the crust partway, add in the filling, bake that, and add on the icing or whatever was supposed to go on it. Man, I really need to watch more baking videos.

Ah, wait… I don’t have my phone or my laptop.

None of my electronics are here with me in this place…

Taking the fresh towel of ice from Deuce, who then grabbed a plate from Trey, I hung my head in distress as several horrible realizations dawned on me. I had spent so much money on those game consoles back home, but now it was all going to go down the drain. My family was probably convinced I was kidnapped and- if too much times passes- they might even believe me dead and give away my belongings. It’s been two-and-a-half days so far, right? So if they went to the police they might have only started trying to search for me recently.

I can only imagine how badly my siblings are reacting to this…

Damn it. They’ve had so much bad stuff happen to them growing up, I don’t want to think about how they’re handling my disappearance. I remember getting lost at a fair once when I was really little and them all freaking out, and that was just for a few hours. Heck, when I took the wrong school bus and wound up at our father’s house instead of our mother’s they straight-up called the police. With all their depression and anxiety, caused by our parents divorce and all the friends they’ve had who’ve lost their lives, would they really be able to recover…?

I was the youngest, and being as sickly as I was didn’t make things any better. Sure there was a point in time where it felt like everyone hated me for ten years straight, but that was because the pain they were going through was still fresh. I, the small naive child at the time, who was born so far out of the loop, couldn’t possibly understand and relate to them so they distanced themselves from me. They pushed me away constantly. But that didn’t mean they didn’t care.

The thing was that they cared _too_ much. Their reactions to me getting lost or winding up at the wrong house made that clear.

But my dumb, stupid child brain didn’t realize it at the time. It wasn’t until years later after I stopped being so _angry_ at everything- at them for “abandoning” me, for leaving me with the jerks we called “cousins” that were still living in our mother’s house when they moved away- that I understood.

Yeah, I hurt during that time of my life, but they hurt more.

And now I feared that… the hurt they were going to be experiencing might…

No. No, it’s fine. They’re strong. Stronger than me, anyway.

Everything is going to be okay. I believe in them.

“Here.” I jumped, snapping out of my thoughts and looking up to see Trey smiling at me, holding out a plate. “You get some, too. Try to take small bites though- we don’t want to aggravate your throat.”

“Uh, o-okay…” I awkwardly grabbed the plate with one hand, setting it on the table in front of me. I wasn’t too terribly fond of sweets, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. I cringed a little when I spoke, but I forced the words out anyway. “Thank you.”

“Don’t rush yourself.” He scolded lightly, looking like he was about to tap his hand on my head. What was I- some kind of disobedient puppy? Oh gods, nope. I spent too much time around a specific teacher, clearly. Holy frick. “Don’t speak unless necessary.”

Cater blinked, overhearing the conversation, and cut himself a slice of tart. “Huh? Wait, what’s wrong with Ellie’s throat?” He squinted, leaning over to try and get a better look, and his eyes widened when he saw the damage. “A-Are those bruises? How did you get those!? Trey, how did she get those?”

The third-year sighed and pushed up his glasses, smile a bit strained. “On their way to collect chestnuts, Eleanora here wound up stepping on a certain dorm-leader’s tail…”

Cater stared. Realization flashed across his face and recoiled, alarmed. “No way! E-Ellie, you stepped on Leona’s tail!?”

“That’s what I just said.” Trey deadpanned. “We’re trying to limit her talk for now, so don’t bother her too much, okay?”

“Eh…? Fine…” Cater pouted, looking at me sympathetically. “Poor Ellie. Those bruises are so not cute.”

“Who cares if they’re cute or not?” Grim demanded, the cat monster wandering over to his plate of tart and practically drooling over his slice. He leaned in close, inhaling deeply with a pleased grin on his lips. “Bruises are bruises, y'know? And this tart smells so yummy! Ah, deliciously sweet scents are filling my senses… the chestnuts on top are super glossy while the cream underneath is so fluffy! Aha~ let’s dig in!”

He couldn’t hold himself back any longer. Grim lowered his face and took a big bite, marron glacé and all, and hummed joyfully to himself. Ace and Deuce followed suit, and both boys acted totally shocked. Cater, on the other hand, appeared proud of their accomplishments. “Th-This is…!” Ace started, bringing a hand up to his mouth as he chewed. “Holy crap…”

“It’s like the stuff you buy in stores!” Deuce finished, swallowing his piece. His sea green eyes were wide. Though a bit hesitant due to my distaste for overly sweet things, I grabbed the fork that was handed to me and dug out a tiny piece, eying the cream on top uncertainly for a moment- brain comparing it to icing- before sticking it in my mouth.

I chewed for a moment and then paused, surprised by the taste, before taking another cautious bite to try and figure out how exactly I felt about it. It was pretty good, actually- the nuttiness of the chestnuts balancing out the overall sweetness from the white chocolate and marron glacé. I blinked. “...Huh.”

Trey chuckled at my reaction, amused. “Like it?”

“...Maybe…”

Grim took another bite, speaking with his mouth full again, as he rambled, “Even though ith not ovehwy thweet, there’sh shtill a thertain richneth to it… mmm~! Ith wike a gahden of chethnuth in mah mouf!”

The green-haired third-year raised an eyebrow, staring at the cat monster. “Is… that a compliment? And mouth closed, Grim. We don’t want to repeat a previous conversation, do we?”

Grim scrunched his nose up at Trey, turning his head away and continuing to munch on his tart. He mumbled to himself, probably insulting him, and I had half a mind to stand up and march over to lecture the cat monster, but I was way too lazy. I didn’t have the energy for it. I simply munched on the tart, closing my eyes and savoring the taste as exhaustion started to wash over me again. I was so tired… all I wanted to do was sleep.

“Oh, hey, Trey!” Cater suddenly said, pausing right before he was about to take his first bite of the tart. “Why don’t you do the thing? Go on- show ‘em!”

“The thing…? Ahh, you mean _that_.” The man hummed. Trey circled the table, cutting himself a slice of tart, golden eyes flashing mischievously. “If you don’t mind my asking, what are your guys’ favorite foods?”

Ace eyed the third-years strangely. “Um… my favorites are cherry pie and hamburgers…”

“Tuna!” Grim informed, standing and folding his arms over his chest. He looked just as confused as the rest of us freshmen. “But cheese omurice, grilled chicken, and pudding are all good, too!”

“If I had to pick…” Deuce furrowed his brows. “...I guess omurice?”

This was the weirdest twist of conversation yet. Trey and Cater were clearly plotting something, but what it was I wasn’t sure. Hold on- is Trey pulling out his magical pen? Is he about to cast some sort of spell? What for? Is he going to transform the tart? Holy crap; is that a thing he can do? That would be cool.

Cater smirked. “Grilled lamb with diablo sauce is _my_ fav.”

“Alright then.” Trey held his wand up- only to pause. “Ah, what about you, Eleanora? Just say the name of the food.”

Th-That’s… um… hrm. I bit my bottom lip, nibbling on it a little as I thought about my answer. I liked a lot of things, though I wasn’t really sure what my favorite was. My food preferences mostly centered around meat- like chicken, beef, pork… all of that. Oh! I got it.

“Cheesy ranch chicken…?”

“Of course it’s _cheesy_. _”_ Ace said, smirking at me. I blinked, confused, before my eyes lit up in understanding. My mouth opened in an “o” shape and he snickered, entertained by his own joke. “I knew you ate too much of that stuff!”

Forbidden from speaking at the moment, I made a face. The ginger laughed louder upon seeing this, and Deuce shook his head- questioning once again why we allowed ourselves to hang around Ace. I was honestly starting to wonder that myself, but there was no denying that I enjoyed bantering with the ginger. Roughhousing was really fun, even if I… couldn’t do it for very long. Despite all the annoyances and troubles that came with my curse, lungs, and lack of medicine, and all the responsibility being thrust on me by the headmaster, it felt like I had freedom again.

It… felt like I could have _fun_ again. Fun with real people instead of just fictional characters from video games. After I lost contact with everyone once we all graduated, it… felt like I had no one. I tried to keep the friendships going, but they were all so busy with their new lives and… I just got left behind. I think that was part of why I overworked myself, aside from my need to feel useful and independent.

I was… still angry. Angry at myself, at the world, at my sick body not letting me do things other people could and preventing me from being myself. It was a way to vent. And since I couldn’t get hugs or affection anymore from the people I had once found myself so close to, I became lonely. And now that I had people again… friends…

I found myself questioning it. Questioning them and their motives, their thought processes and behavior.

People don’t actually _want_ to hang around me, right? That was what I had grown to let myself believe, time and again. From childhood to now. Back-and-forth in a never ending conversation of self-loathing and doubt. But… that couldn’t be the case here. Deuce, Ace, and even Grim proved that they cared. I’m just… too scared to believe it.

Because… as mad as he could make me, I did actually like hanging out with Ace. I definitely wished he had more than one brain cell, if he had any at all, but… he didn’t seem bothered by my illness. He didn’t tip-toe around it, treating me like some kind of dainty fragile flower. He put me in choke holds and aggressively ruffled my hair, and overall just had fun. That… was nice. It helped me.

More than I wanted to admit.

And when I’m… with him and the others, I… don’t feel as lonely. It’s warm. Warm and wonderful, and I feel so glad to have met them. It just makes me so _angry_ that I had to be dragged to another world in order to do so, and that… fills me with a different kind of loneliness. 

“Anyway,” Ace began, looking up at our green-haired upperclassman, “what did you wanna know our favorite foods for?”

Trey smirked. “This. _Doodle Suit~!”_

He waved the magical pen in the air. There was a light and some… sparkles… and then nothing. Everything was normal. I had thought for sure he was pointing the pen at the tart we were all eating, but… I guess not? I set my icy-cold towel on the table and picked up my plate, staring at the slice of tart suspiciously. It didn’t look any different…

Was I overthinking things again? Maybe I imagined it, but then… why did he want to know our favorite foods? What “thing” was Cater trying to get Trey to do? Deuce frowned at Trey, equally confused. “Did you just…?”

Trey smirked. “Why don’t you all take another bite of your tart?” He suggested.

Though befuddled, everyone did as told. I set the plate back down and grabbed the fork, cutting off a small piece of the tart and tentatively placing the treat into my mouth. Only… something was wrong. _Way wrong._ It didn’t taste sweet at all. Instead it was salty and cheesy, and so… so…

Delicious. It… tasted like my mother’s cooking.

Mom…

My eyes started to sting.

Ace, on the other hand, was completely freaking out. “Th-This is-!? How!? It’s mont blanc, but… but it tastes like cherry pie!?”

“Tuna!” Grim cheered, happily munching on his tart. Flakes of cream decorated his muzzle, the cat monster licking his lips with a grin. “Mmmm~! Ah- now I’m tasting cheese omurice! And…” He knelt back down, taking a couple more bites. “Grilled Chicken! And… and… mmm…” Grim has never looked so satisfied. “Pudding~!”

“Isn’t it fun!?” Cater beamed, excitedly biting into his slice of tart. He looked up at Trey, grinning widely. “If you did this with a girl, she’d be super impressed!”

It was at that moment he remembered that there was, in fact, a girl in the room. His green eyes went wide and the man whirled around, leaning over excitedly. I snapped out of my melancholic thoughts and stared in confusion, the spoon in my mouth as I took another bite of the tart. Cater looked as though he was planning something, the mischief back in his grin.

“Well, what do you think, Ellie? Trey’s pretty awesome bachelor material, isn’t he?”

Uh… what? Bachelor material…?

“Hey, now,” Trey said, raising a hand up and trying to get Cater to back down, the third-year looking a little awkward at the question, “what did I say about making her talk?”

“She doesn’t have to talk to answer.” Cater responded easily, scooting his chair over. I tensed when he wrapped an arm around my shoulders, and Ace narrowed his eyes at the sight. Deuce started to stand, looking like he was about to force Cater to move, but Trey held an arm out to stop either of the first-years from acting out. He then started to make his way around the table towards us, behaving much more calmly and rational about this. “So, what about it, Ellie? You said you don’t deal with relationships, but, like, isn’t Trey the best? Aren’t you impressed?”

I… don’t like this. I slowly removed the spoon from my lips, pondering the best course of action. If I placed the ice pack back on my neck, the cold might seep through into his arm and he would get uncomfortable and be forced to move. On the other hand, he would have to move for me to even reach the ice pack. I could just grab his arm and throw it off my shoulders, but… I didn’t want to be rude.

“If you did date, would you consider dating him? What’s your type?”

I really wish I wasn’t having this one-sided conversation right now. Can I leave yet?

“Yes, no, maybe~? C’mon-!”

The boy was unable to finish. A hand came smacking down onto his head, annoyance flickering in Trey’s golden eyes. His smile was forced as he looked at his friend, the strawberry blond made to lean back due to his grip. “If you don’t stop, I’m kicking you out of this kitchen.” Trey threatened calmly, voice low. “For the last time, _quit bothering her.”_

“Th-That expression you’re wearing is kinda cool, vice dorm leader…” Cater chuckled, growing nervous. “You’re like some kinda knight in shining armor, huh?”

“Definitely not. Now let her go.”

Cater shifted and unhooked his arm from around my shoulders, allowing me to relax, and he scooted his seat back next to Ace. The ginger glared at him from the corner of his eyes. “Huh? What’s that look for?”

Ace pointed his fork at him accusingly. “Wolf.”

“H-Huh!?”

Ignoring all of them, Trey looked down at me. “You okay?”

I hesitated before giving a small nod, not really sure what else I should do. He wouldn’t exactly let me speak, so... My eyebrows furrowed as I thought about how I should expression gratitude, before my eyes widened and I hurriedly gestured at him, face contorting in pain as I tried to mouth the words. It failed, I think, if the confusion on his face was anything to go by.

“What is it?”

I was starting to grow frustrated. I gestured for him to move closer, which he did, and Trey leaned down slightly so we were closer in height. With that, my plan came to fruition, and I watched with glee as surprise wrote across his face, his golden eyes wide as I pat him on the head. I could hear Cater snickering in the background, but I pretended he didn’t exist. “Th… Thank… you.”

When I pulled away and Trey stood up straight, his face was a little red. I didn’t think much of it, instead reaching over to grab the ice pack of a towel and resting it against my bruises again. I proceeded to take another bite of tart. It tasted sweet again. Trey cleared his throat and pushed up his glasses, blinking a couple of times. “You’re… welcome.”

“We need to put a leash on you.” Grim stated bluntly, giving Cater a look. The strawberry blond jumped and looked at the cat monster in alarm.

“Wh-Why? What did I do?”

“Everything.” Trey said, flicking him in the forehead as he walked by, stopping beside him and acting as a divider between us so that he wouldn’t approach me again. “Anyway, how does it all taste? Good, right?”

“It’s amazing!” Deuce said, appearing grateful for the distraction. He seemed bother by Cater and his behavior, but since Trey had it all under control he wasn’t going to get involved. “Is changing the flavor of food your _unique magic?”_

Trey grinned. “It’s actually a magic that lets me overwrite an element of something. So the element, or component, that I can change isn’t just taste, but also scent, color, texture… anything. The only real restriction I have is that there’s a time limit; the stuff I overwrite only lasts for a few minutes, so that’s why I call it “doodle”. Because it’s like a doodle or scribble one can make on a piece of paper. It’s not permanent.”

Oh! Oh! I get that reference! I sat up straighter at that, mouth opening to start talking- wanting to ask if he liked to draw- only to cut myself off before I could get a single syllable out. I didn’t want to get yelled at or lectured, but… dang it. I really want to learn more about these people. I huffed, slumping back down into my seat.

“With your “doodle suit”,” Grim began, folding his arms as he licked the remaining tart cream off of his face, sitting up, “my dream of “all you can eat tuna” might not be a dream!” He flashed a toothy grin. “It’s so much better than the magic Riddle uses to bully everyone!”

Trey’s smile dropped upon hearing that, not at all pleased at that comparison. My attention zoomed in on him when I noticed that, surprised. When he spoke his voice was much quieter, calm in a way that was almost eerie. “No, I… I’m nowhere near his level. My magic is nothing more than child’s play when next to Riddle’s...”

That was… odd. Is he okay? My grip on the towel tightened and I stood, staring up at Trey in concern. It was really starting to feel like he had some kind of history with the rule-loving redhead. I never expected him to wear such a sad expression on his face.

The silence following the third-year’s words was highly uncomfortable. I glanced at Cater, observing his reaction, before sharing a look with Ace and Deuce, the boys seeming to find something strange about Trey’s behavior as well. Grim looked confused. After a suffocating minute, Trey cleared his throat and looked at the clock before smiling at us. “A-Anyway, it’s getting late. We should clean up and get ready to give Riddle the tart tomorrow. It’s the Unbirthday Party, so make sure you guys aren’t late.”

“Yeah, yeah!” Cater said, snapping his fingers. “It’s super important, so you have to be on time or the dorm leader will have your heads.”

I was a bit of a stickler for punctuality myself, but to the point of beheading…? I flashbacked to the time in the cafeteria where Riddle had threatened Cater and refused to help Ace, and I cringed. I really hope he just acted intimidating and that any impressions were just misunderstandings. I didn’t want to imagine Riddle, someone who looked so _pure_ when he genuinely smiled, being the sort of person who would yell at you for being ten seconds late. It was terrifying.

But then… if he was so terrifying… then…

Then was the reason he looked so happy before be because he didn’t have many friends, if any at all? He mentioned that not many people ask him to eat lunch at their table. I think… he might have even brought up Trey? Was that right? I don’t really remember, but if he did… was he friends with him? Is that why Trey seemed so bothered by the comparison?

He doesn’t seem to like hearing Riddle be talked about so negatively, either…

Interesting… I want to ask him, yet if I try to speak he’ll tell me to be quiet… blegh. There’s no winning. I sighed and watched as Ace poked at the collar around his neck, the boy grimacing at the magic-sealing object. He pouted, looking at me. “Hey, El~ you’ll let me sleep over again, right?”

Hah? Oh, okay. Sure.

“Cater is a big meanie; if I try to go back to the dorm, he’ll kick me right out!”

I shrugged at Ace, not finding any harm in letting him hide out in the abandoned dorm an extra night. He declared himself as a new member, anyway. I’m not going to force him to sleep outside. I’m mean, but I’m not _that_ mean- at least, I don’t think I am. I try not to be.

Cater slumped over, shaking his head at the ginger. “You’re such a prickly freshman…”

“Heehee~ towards you, maybe.” Ace grinned and stuck his tongue out. “Unlike you, El is nice to me!”

“Ace!” Deuce scolded, standing and slamming his hands on the table. “Don’t force Eleanora into spoiling you so much! She has enough to deal with already.”

“Yeah!” Grim exclaimed, turning to face the red-eyed teen, placing his paws on his hips. “You gotta pay to stay! Ten tuna cans a night!”

“Whaaat!?” Ace looked at them incredulously, unable to believe what he was hearing. “Are you telling me to sleep outside!?”

Oh boy. You know what? Screw it. I raised a hand up, keeping the other on the towel against my neck, and started to speak. “I-It’s fine-”

Trey stopped me, talking louder and preventing me from finishing my sentence. “Hey, Deuce.” The blue-haired teen stopped talking, looking at him in confusion. “If you’re that worried, why don’t you spend the night, too? You can keep an eye on Ace that way. As the vice dorm leader of Heartslabyul, I give you full permission.”

“Y-You’re sure?” Deuce stammered, startled. He then looked at me, concern written all over his face. “I… Is that okay with you, Eleanora?”

Not really caring one way or another, I shrugged. The more the merrier, I guess; I had no reason to refuse. Deuce was a good boy at heart and wouldn’t try anything, so there’s nothing for me to fear. Ace made a joke here and there, but even he kept himself in line. Heck, a sleepover might even be fun; I never had one before. Are pillow fights still a thing?

Would my lungs even last long enough for one? What about blanket forts?

The dorm is still rundown and gross, so all the pillows and blankets are probably super dusty. And it isn’t like we can play video games or watch movies. Oh man, what should I do? I don’t want them to get bored. What do people even do at sleepovers nowadays? All the food in the dorm is probably expired- which means there won’t be any snacks. I would have to clean the kitchen first before there could even be any hope of stocking up on supplies. Talk about a pain.

“W-Wait,” Cater stammered, alarmed, “aren’t you being a bit too nice to the freshmen, Trey? How come you’re letting them spend the night with her? That’s so unfair! I’m super jelly!” Trey looked down when he moved closer and grabbed his arm, the strawberry blond tugging on it with the sweetest smile he could muster. “Hey, hey; can I join them too? Pleaaaase? I’ll be good!” 

“No. I forbid it.”

“Why!?”

Trey smirked at Cater. “I told you to stay away from her, didn’t I? What makes you think I’d so suddenly change my mind?”

Cater clicked his tongue, pulling away and crossing his arms over his chest. “Tch. Bringin’ me down like that… it hurts, bro. It hurts.”

Trey rolled his eyes. Next thing I knew he was beside me, hands on my shoulders, an apologetic smile on his face. My eyes went wide, and as I looked up at him I found myself realizing just how tall he really was. Wow. I mean, he wasn’t over six foot like the headmaster or some of the teachers, but compared to me he was still huge. I just barely reached his chin.

“I’m really sorry about forcing those two on you, Eleanora.” Trey told me quietly. “But… we’re all counting on you. Please make sure they’re on time with the tart, okay?”

...Frick.

Why is everyone tossing all this responsibility at me? Do I just give off some kind of aura that makes people think I’m mature enough to handle all this nonsense? Because I’m not. I can’t even adult properly. I want to help with the more physical things, like cleaning and baking, and carrying heavy groceries. That’s what regular, healthy people can do. I bit down on my bottom lip, worrying at the flesh, doubt and uncertainty tearing away at my mind.

I just… don’t get it.

But I really wanted to be relied on, even if it wasn’t something I was good at, so… I nodded at Trey, flashing him the brightest smile I could manage and giving him a thumbs up. I would drag the boys to Heartslabyul no matter what it took.

His expression softened. “Thank you.”

“The Unbirthday Party…” Ace muttered, determination flashing in his red eyes. He curled his hands into fists, gritting his teeth, the teen looking like he was about to hit something. “This damn collar is definitely coming off tomorrow! Just you wait, Riddle! This is gonna be the best tart you’ve ever tasted! You hear me!?”

“We’re in the school kitchen.” Grim deadpanned. “He can’t hear you.”

“It’s a figure of speech, Grim!” The ginger snapped.

…

Cleaning up the kitchen didn’t take that long with everyone working together. Although when I say “working together” it was really more of Trey getting annoyed at Ace because he kept complaining about how many dishes there were and how gross everything felt after being put in the sink. Cater kept taking pictures, scrolling through his phone and making comments here-and-there, and was blatantly refusing to help whenever Deuce would ask. I tried to help fix up the table, but I was constantly told to sit back down and rest.

I scrunched my nose up and sighed, waiting impatiently for the group to finish cleaning, dozing off a couple of times when the exhaustion became too much. Once they were done we all headed to the Hall of Mirrors where we bid adieu to Trey and Cater, and where Deuce ran off to go grab some clothes. He even grabbed Ace some pajamas, and made sure to snag the ginger’s deck of playing cards while he was at it. With that we went back to Ramshackle, where we cleaned out the fridge and stuck the tart inside, and gave Ace and Deuce the lackadaisical tour.

That tour was also how we discovered that my ceremonial uniform, which I had been wearing before Divus magically put this new outfit on me, was laying on the couch perfectly folded with the plague mask resting on top of it. “That works.” I croaked, leaving Grim with the boys in the lounge so I could change into the ceremonial robes.

My bed was still broken and collapsed, but if we were going to be having a sleep over… hmmm. I grabbed my pillows and blankets, and wandered over to the staircase where I then proceeded to throw the outfit downstairs. Ace yelped when he nearly got hit by a pillow and looked up at me, startled. “The hell? Why are you throwing things!?”

I resisted the urge to laugh. “Sorry! I’m… getting the stuff for the sleepover. Wanna help… with the mattress?”

“Mattress?” He blinked. Deuce picked up the blankets off the ground, looking very confused.

“What are we doing? And… why are you in your ceremonial uniform?”

I leaned over the railing, tilting my head curiously. The embarrassment was near impossible to hide, face flushing red as I realized that I was probably screwing up big time in trying to figure out how sleepovers were supposed to go. “Uh, well, I-I don’t… have pajamas? Like I said, when I got kidnapped I… lost everything I had, so… all I have are these.”

My voice was still raspy, but having the ice on my throat and remaining quiet for so long helped tremendously. Trey kept making me tea earlier whenever I ran out, so talking didn’t hurt too badly. The boys were making their way up the staircase now, Grim following behind, and they all stopped in front of me. I shifted awkwardly, fiddling my fingers, seriously wishing I was allowed to go out more as a child before I had gotten sick. Wishing… I wasn’t so angry and had been able to make friends more easily so I _could_ go out more.

“And, um, the mattress is… well, I mean, you guys need a place to sleep and- are blanket forts not a thing?”

They stared at me, red, blue, and sea green eyes wide. Confusion and surprised colored all of their faces, and I found myself feeling even more ridiculous with each passing second. I started to tug at my sleeves and grabbed at the hood on my robe, trying to hide part of my face.

“I… I guess not. Okay. I-I’ll just, um, go get some more blankets and pillows and wash them real quick, since they’re all super dusty… I don’t think you all want to get cold in the middle of the night, so...”

Ace suddenly started laughing. I stiffened, coughing a little as my breathing got uneven, and Deuce brought a hand up to his face, looking like he was about to cry. Grim was just plain lost. I don’t think he even understood what a sleepover was. “What are you, a little kid!?” Ace exclaimed, snickering and running his fingers through his hair, brushing and holding his bangs back as he looked at me, a wicked grin on his lips. “Aren’t you supposed to be the grown-up here? Who makes blanket forts nowadays?”

“I-I just thought…” I don’t know. I pulled the hood over my head, feeling my eyes start to water a little as I shrunk down, trying to hide in the bulky clothing, voice becoming small and quiet. “I-I don’t know how sleepovers work, so I just… I just thought it would be fun. Sorry…”

Ace’s laughter died down and he paused, realizing how serious I was taking the situation. He released his hair and dragged his hand down his face, groaning. “Oh my god, El. Fine. We can make a pillow fort- er, blanket fort. Whatever.” He walked forward, planting a hand on my head, leaning down so we were closer in height. “So no crying! Where’s that stupid smile of yours, huh?”

I flinched when he reached through the hood to grab at my cheeks, pulling on them and causing me to cry out.

Deuce, still looking on the verge of tears himself, brought a hand to his lips, chuckling. “You’re starting to sound pretty cheesy, Ace. Are her jokes rubbing off on you, too?”

“Hah? Ew, no way! I am not cheesy!” Ace released me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and tugging me to him forcibly, while simultaneously reaching out to punch Deuce in the shoulder. His collar dug into my forehead slightly, but I pretended not to notice, too entertained by their banter to care. “Shut up! Stop grinning like that, you goody-two-shoes! Ugh, are you crying, too?”

“No! I just… had dust in my eye, that’s all.” Deuce cleared his throat. “Anyway, Eleanora- you mentioned washing the blankets?”

I blinked, looking up at him, hood falling back down thanks to Ace. “Uh, y-yeah.”

He frowned, furrowing his brows. “How? If you don’t have any of your belongings, then that means you can’t pay for the cleaners to have them cleaned, can you?”

“Oh! Yeah, no, I don’t mean like that.” I beamed, hands folding around the arm keeping me trapped against the ginger next to me. “I have a laundry room here! The ghosts discovered it! Which means~!” I grinned up at Ace. “You can even wash your nasty uniform!”

“Nasty?” He almost looked offended. “I’ve only worn it for two days.”

“Two days, while being covered in dirt and ink. You also slept in it last night. That makes it nasty, ya nasty. You smell awful.”

Grim walked up, climbing onto Deuce and situating himself on his shoulder. “Hey, human! Isn’t the school covering all your fees and whatnot? Can’t you just have the headmaster pay for you to get new clothes?”

That… was a good point. Some of the pettiness was still there inside of me, bitter and spiteful about being brought to this world, and frustrated because I was forced to attend classes I wanted no part in. “But…” It still wasn’t my money. Food was one thing- clothes were another. I already had things to wear, even if they weren’t exactly practical for sleeping in. I didn’t want to push my luck.

“You _are_ the school’s responsibility, aren’t you?” Ace smirked, looking down at me. “The headmaster even pays for your lunch and school supplies. So~ that means we can totally run to the store and steal you something to wear!”

“We’re not stealing!” Deuce hissed, looking like he was about to smack him upside the head. “And how are we supposed to pay for them, anyway? It’s not like Headmaster Crowley actually gave her money to spend!”

The ginger waved a hand dismissively. “It’s fine~ we’ll just tell the store keeper to put it on that guy’s tab. I’m sure he won’t mind.”

This sounded like a really bad idea. “I-I don’t think… that’s how it works. He isn’t just gonna let me wander around taking stuff without having a way to actually pay him for it all.”

Ace paused. “That’s… a good point. What are we gonna do then?”

I pulled away from his arm, stepping back and folding my arms over my chest. “What I… said we were going to be doing? Maybe? It’s fine; I don’t actually need pajamas. I got these. Besides, I… don’t want the headmaster angry at me, so let’s just… not do anything to make him mad.”

Deuce nodded in agreement. “The store is probably going to close soon, anyway. We might not even make it in time.”

There we go. Problem solved. “Right, well, I’m gonna go tear apart some beds and snag some blankets, so… yeah. Feel free to- uh, do whatever, I guess.” I coughed a little, cringing and placing a hand gingerly to my throat, before awkwardly starting down the hall. Ace groaned loudly, acting like quite the drama queen.

“Are you serious right now?” He glanced at Deuce and Grim, watching in disbelief as the blue-haired teen shrugged and took off after me. Ace threw his hands up and followed dejectedly, exhausted. “Because making _tarts_ weren’t enough-! Tch, this dorm probably doesn’t even have any snacks… I’m hungry.”

“So, what all are we taking apart?” Deuce asked curiously. “I can do the heavy lifting.”

I was in the process of tugging some blankets and sheets off the bed when he entered the room and spoke up. I looked up at him brightly, relieved at the offer. “I-I figured… we could… move some mattresses downstairs! Place them together and then… make a tower using more mattresses… and hold the blankets in place with pillows… so it’s like a tent! A blanket fort! But I… need to wash the blankets and pillow cases first… and the sheets… ah- where are the ghosts?”

I hurriedly let go of the sheets, power walking past a surprised Deuce and Grim, and peered out the room into the hallway, looking both ways in hopes I could find the undead trio easily. Ace raised an eyebrow, stopping a few feet away from the doorway, and stared at me. “Uh, what’re you doing?”

“Moe, Larry, and Curly!” I breathed, feeling a bit worn from all the excessive movement. I could feel the excitement growing with each passing second, and that really only made it harder to intake oxygen. My heart was beating so loud and fast it hurt, lungs burning and wheezing within my chest. “They’re… here… somewhere! I-I’m gonna… find them! Be right back!”

“H-Hey, wait-!” The ginger extended a hand, but it was too late. I was already heading back downstairs, attempting to locate the ghosts. Ace grimaced and sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “Damn it… what the hell, El? Is she really that excited for a _sleepover?”_

Deuce cracked a small smile at that, already getting to work on pulling the sheets and blankets off the bed- finishing what I had started. “Aren’t you? I’ve never really had friends I could host sleepovers with as a kid, so… seeing her so excited about it making me excited, too.”

“Ya’ll are weird.” Grim said, hopping off of then teen’s shoulder. He leaped onto the mattress and unsheathed his claws, trying to tug the pillows off. A mistake, because then he sneezed. “A-Acchoo! Ugh, this place is so freaking dusty... I hate it! Wh-Whoa,” The cat monster held his arms out, blue eyes wide, “the bed just shook! This one isn’t gonna collapse too, is it?”

Deuce paused and Ace furrowed his brows, both boys looking at Grim in confusion.

Meanwhile I was in the ridiculously large bathroom, calling out for the ghosts. They had to be in the dorm somewhere; they never go anywhere else. At least, I don’t think they do? I was sort of under the impression they were tied to this building because of how they died- whatever way that happened- and that was why they were so happy to try and murder me and a certain cat monster upon our arrival. They wanted company.

“Moe~? L-Larry?” Oh, the bath water is running. “...Curly?”

I wandered over to the far edge of the bath and knelt down, turning off the faucet. Weird. Were they planning to prank Grim? I tensed, suddenly feeling a cold chill as I stared at my reflection in the hot water. Something was wrong. What was it? This coldness… could it be…?

 _“Boo!”_ _  
_

A shriek escaped my lips and I jumped, and before I knew what was happening there were hands on my back pushing me and then I was at the bottom of the giant tub, splashing around frantically in the deep end- choking and trying to figure out which way was up and which way was down. My hands and feet moved, thrashing and trying to turn myself around, but it wasn’t working.

This freaking uniform was so heavy- I can hardly move in it! There were too many layers; is that the shirt or the robe floating around me? It’s completely black! I-I can’t… see… or breathe…

The bottom-! Where’s the bottom!? I smacked at the cloth, trying to get a better look at my surroundings, but I was starting to grow light headed and dizzy. My eyes felt like they were going to pop out of my skull and it was taking everything I had not to cough, as I knew I would only doom myself further if that happened. I… I’m scared.

I… I can’t… move. Not with all these layers.

Am I drowning?

Drowning… in black…

Black like… ink?

Suddenly a pair of hands grabbed my arms and I found myself being hoisted out of the water, gasping and choking. Larry set me down carefully onto my feet and when he let go I collapsed, a hand to my chest, wheezing. _“Gehehe~ we really got you there, huh? Can you not swim?”_

I decided not to answer that, merely shooting him a dirty look as I tried to regain my composure. Moe smacked Larry on the arm, but Curly was cackling. _“I told you to get her out sooner! We promised not to kill her, remember?”_

_“Yeah, yeah! Her reaction was still funny though, gehe!”_

_“Heh, I really though she was gonna drown for a minute.”_ Curly snickered. _“We almost got a new playmate~!”_

Larry floated down to my level, phasing halfway through the floor and folding his arms over his chest. _“You okay there, Eleanora? We didn’t spook you that bad, did we?”_ He actually looked concerned. Moe frowned, and he and Curly moved closer. _“You aren’t gonna die and join us this soon, are you?”_

Coughing a bit more, I inhaled a shaky breath and sat up, slicking my now-wet hair back and blinking some droplets away from my lashes. “I-I’m… fine. I just… god freaking…” I pulled the robe off, struggling for a moment with it, before tossing it on the floor in frustration. I hated this stupid outfit more than ever now. I closed my eyes, forcing myself to calm down. “I’m… okay. Sorry.”

More floated in front of me. _“Why were you lookin’ for us, anyway? Aren’t you playing with those new Heartslabyul friends of yours?”_

“Yeah, but…” My eyebrows knit together and I raised a hand to my neck, flinching when I felt the bruises. I felt a little sheepish and awkward when I spoke, wondering if ghosts would even enjoy the kind of thing I was about to suggest. “I-I figured you guys could join us? We were… gonna make blanket forts and stuff, a-and… well, I thought you might wanna help? We’d be playing cards later, so…”

Larry blinked. _“You… want us to join your sleepover?”_

 _“Even though we’re ghosts?”_ Curly continued, just as dumbfounded.

I worried my bottom lip, blinking repeatedly and looking to-and-from the ghosts, hoping I haven’t upset them in any way, shape, or form. “Y-Yeah… I mean, we’re friends- right? At least, I guess I sort of thought we were…”

The ghosts looked touched.

“Granted, we gotta wash all the blankets and pillow sheets and what not so we _can_ make the fort, b-but… yeah. That’s… That’s a thing… that we’re doing. Uh- so… yay? Nay? Possib-lay?”

I never thought the day would come where I would see three spooky spectres close to tears. Still recovering from near-drowning, Moe made himself solid enough to help me walk, and the boys almost had a heart attack when they saw the ghost trio. It was pretty hilarious- Ace had already known about the ghosts’ existence due to Grim when he was looking for me this morning, but he hadn’t actually seen them. The same went for Deuce.

Eventually I had to explain why I was suddenly dripping with water from head-to-toe, and when I finished Grim pointed his paw at me, screeching, “See! That’s what they did to me. This is why I told you they were bad ghosts! Now you know how it feels!”

The ghosts merely laughed, not at all perturbed by the angry cat monster, and promptly apologized to an agitated Deuce for nearly drowning me. They agreed to help with the blanket forts to make up for nearly killing me, and together we managed to get at least five different beds pulled apart. Since the laundry room had multiple machines, it made washing everything at once rather easy- and since the sheets and pillow cases could be washed on delicate… that went by fairly quickly.

Heck, time passed by quickly in general because of all the work that was being done. Once we had the mattresses stacked together, we sat on the bed in a circle playing cards. Grim didn’t understand a lot of the rules, so we mostly played Old Maid, but it was fun. I introduced them to Slap Jack- poor Grim kept getting his paw smacked and the ghosts kept phasing their bodies so they couldn’t feel any pain.

Moe also kept cheating, phasing his hand so it was on the bottom every time. Ace would yelp and recoil, shaking his hand to try and get rid of the cold chill he was suddenly feeling. It was hilarious. Deuce laughed at him and I smirked, more often than not being the winner whenever Moe wasn’t cheating. It was great.

I had to put my school uniform back on so my ceremonial robes could be washed again, but hey- I had fun. And when the blankets, sheets, and pillow cases were ready to used… oh boy. The real adventure began. It was beautiful! I couldn’t even begin to describe the insanity that occurred as we tried to make everything work. The ghosts were great for reaching high places, and they even helped situate the extra mattresses when needed.

Before long it was done… and by the time I was back in my ceremonial robes and ready to play another round of Old Maid… it was two in the morning and everyone was asleep, curled up in the fort and spread about the two mattresses we had pressed together. As I tossed some blankets on Ace, Deuce, and Grim so they wouldn’t get cold I found myself yawning, plopping down on one of the mattresses and passing out myself. I’ve never felt so exhausted.

So exhausted and… happy.

But happy things only last for so long, because I found myself back in the forest again. The cat was gone, though I supposed that wasn’t any real problem seeing how irritating he was last time. But now I can hear… sobbing? I-Is the boy here again?

Where?

I whirled around, blonde hair flying over my shoulder as I did so. I could see a familiar patch of red hair walking along the path, past some mushrooms and trees. _“Do I have to go, Mama? I-Is… this party really necessary?”_ I hurried after him, desperately wishing I could call out, but despite the rose not being visible it was still most definitely there.

And I… felt like little more than a puppet- whose limbs only moved and whose voice only worked when the puppeteer desired it to do so. There was a script and as the puppet I could only play the part, regardless of whether or not I wanted to.

Right as I was starting to catch up, the boy came to an abrupt halt- not running from me like before. Sniffling and wiping at his face he turned around, and seeing this my little legs slowed down to a complete stop, a familiar pair of eyes staring at me.

They were puffy from tears, but that shade of storm grey was unmistakable- especially with that hair. Such a deep shade of red… only one person I knew could have that color.

 _“You’re back.”_ The child, or rather… Riddle stated.

He looked so small, so tiny and fragile. I had no idea what he was doing here or why he was showing up in these dreams, but all I felt now was an overwhelming urge to hug him. He had been so scary and intimidating earlier, yet here- looking like this- I had the impression that he wouldn’t even be able to harm a fly. He looked so sweet and innocent, and the idea that his mother had hurt him only made my heart hurt more.

_"Are you coming to the party, too?”_

Huh?

The boy lowered his head, bringing his hands up and hugging himself. _“I wish you would say something. But dreams don’t speak, do they? Heh, Mama would get so mad if she learned I was trying to talk to a dream… or if I… was trying to talk to anyone that isn’t a tutor. I… I want to know why…”_

He looked up at me, storm grey eyes shimmering with tears.

_“Why is it… Why is that no matter what I do, Mama isn’t happy? I follow the schedule she made. I memorized every singe rule. I don’t even eat cake or tarts on my birthday! O-Oh, but… today is no one’s birthday. That’s why I’m here. I’m going to the Unbirthday Party! D… Do you want to come with? Ah… but you can’t really hear me, can you? You’re just a dream, after all.”_

Young Riddle stepped forward, and for an instant my image flickered. Glitched. His little fingers wrapped around my own, and at that moment I was myself again. His eyes bore into my brown ones, and he tilted his head- seeing the rose in my mouth.

_“Or is the reason you can’t speak… because of that flower? Your eyes… You see me, don’t you?”_

Able to move on my own again, for however temporary that was going to be, I gave a small nod. His eyes widened at that and a small shaky smile spread across his lips, the boy lowering his head.

_“So you aren’t a dream? When you’re like this… I mean, when you LOOK like this… I… almost feel like you’re real. I wish Mama would let me make friends… we could play for hours if she did.”_

I seriously wanted to just pick this child up and carry him away from this awful parent he keeps mentioning. I was going to have to hunt down adoption papers if this kept up. Kneeling down in an attempt to get on his level and make myself less intimidating, I raised my free hand up. I hesitated slightly, scared that he was just going to suddenly vanish on me again, but when he stood there and nothing happened I continued- resting my hand lightly atop his head. He paused, surprised at the touch, and for a moment he seemed to still.

But then the boy began to tremble, the tears building up fresh and his lips curling back.

 _“Wh-Why… Why doesn’t Mama do this?”_ He asked, sounding absolutely heartbroken. _“I-I do… everything she tells me… b-but she… but she doesn’t even pat me on the head! She doesn’t say “good job” o-or tell me that I “did well” on my studies! She just gives me more to work on!”_

The boy sniffled, releasing my hand and instead grabbing at the hem of his vest, clenching the fabric tightly.

_“What else… am I supposed to do?”_

I could give no answer. Careful not to prick him with any of the thorns still clinging to my body, I moved forward, pulling him to me in a gentle hug- giving him enough room to pull away if he wanted. Instead, the boy just froze. Having not expecting the action he wasn’t quite sure how to respond at first, but then his arms coiled around me, his little fingers pulling at my shirt as he buried his face into my shoulder, sobbing.

_“I-I don’t… I don’t know what else to do! I’m scared… i-it hurts…”_

Everything just hurts. Doesn’t it?

_“I don’t wanna follow these rules… b-but she’ll get so mad at me if I stop. I-I just don’t know what to do! H-How many more rules to do I have to follow- what rule DO I have to follow- in order to make her happy!? Wh-What more… can I do?”_

Gods, the things I wanted to say. This child shouldn’t have to do anything to make his wretched mother happy; he’s done enough. More than enough, in fact. I held him closer, letting him cry it all out, running my fingers gently through his hair and cursing the adult who was supposed to be raising this boy. I had no idea if this person was actually Riddle or if it was just the stress getting to me, and why he kept appearing as a little boy inside my dreams, but…

This was wrong. His mother was wrong.

You shouldn’t have to follow rules to keep someone happy. To please them. You should be allowed to talk to people and make friends, and eat what you wanted on your birthday. You shouldn’t have to live in fear of upsetting your parent or afraid of them considering you worthless. That’s just… wrong. 

It’s toxic.

This boy was being mentally and emotionally abused by his mother, and I was not going to stand for it.

...Wait a minute. This entire time I’ve been… chasing a little boy that looks like Riddle, learning about things that didn’t quite make sense yet aligned with what was happening in the waking world. This was a dream… wasn’t it?

Does this mean… the link all this time was… actually Riddle!?

Are the weird creatures and people I’ve been encountering inside this place actually the memories that were stolen from me due to the curse? How? That doesn’t make any sense. Magic doesn’t exist where I’m from- neither do humanoid cards or talking, disappearing cats. How could this strange land of madness be a memory?

And… what does it have to do with Riddle? Is it his adoration for the Queen of Hearts?

Could my mind just be playing tricks on me?

Feeling Young Riddle start to calm down, I loosened my hold and looked around, observing the arrow signs pinned to the trees and the crazy-looking mushrooms that grew in all sorts of colors and sizes. This felt more like something out of a storybook than anything else. It must be some kind of a mistake.

Unless… no. That wouldn’t make any sense.

Why would there be a storybook about another world? How would someone know I’d have knowledge of this place without me even realizing, and then take it upon themselves to remove my memory so I would forget? Why did they want me to chase the dreams?

And why did… it have be a curse that involved others?

What made me so special? 

_“I-I’m sorry…”_ The boy sniffled, pulling away and rubbing at his face. I snapped out of my thoughts at his words, brain reeling from all the confusion I was currently feeling. I was trying to solve such a large puzzle, yet so many pieces were missing- and the pieces I did have refused to fit together. _“I-I shouldn’t have- ugh, why am I being like this? Mama loves me. She… only wants what’s best for me. I know that. I-I should… be grateful for that. But now…”_

I watched as he took a deep breath, the boy trying to shut his emotions down.

_“If we don’t hurry, we’re going to be late! W-We can’t be late for the Unbirthday Party…”_

He shook his head fervently, grabbing at my hand again and tugging. I stood, wandering after with wide eyes, disturbed by his relationship with his mother. I really hoped I ran into that woman eventually, that way I could show her what-for. Actually, scratch that; I freaking _prayed_ that this was just my mind just playing tricks on me due to all the stress and that it wasn’t actually the curse in action. For all I know his mother could be a sweetheart in real life.

It’s… just the stress. Definitely. Stress and anxiety, a-and maybe a hint of depression? I don’t know. I’m panicking. There was no way this was actually happening, right? Right. A dream is a dream. Although… most dreams don’t involve people choking on roses due to a curse, thus causing them to have the same dream every time they go to sleep.

Ugh! Forget it. I’m not thinking about it.

This just… isn’t reality. I refuse.

How insane is that, anyway? Dreaming about someone I just met, only for them to be in the form of a child? I don’t want to imagine how that conversation would go.

Because… what if… these are actually _his_ memories?

Are our memories mixing together somehow? 

A tug on my hand caught my attention and I found myself moving at a fast pace, short legs chasing after the boy. _“I-It’s this way; hurry! Mama will be mad if I show up late!”_

I stared in shock as the image of the boy then seemed to flicker. For a split second someone older stood in his place, running and dragging me along behind him, and then it was back to the child, and then the older person again. His storm grey eyes flashed determinedly, black gloved fingers clenching my hand in a painful grip as he marched on ahead.

_“I refuse to let that happen.”_

In the distance, I could hear singing. Riddle, in the form that I know him as- dressed in such fantastical garb- started to slow down. He glanced at me from over his shoulder, red eyeshadow lining his eyes.

 _“The Unbirthday Party must go to plan.”_ He told me, voice firm and not leaving room for any argument. The undertone of a threat lined his words as he continued,his eyes narrowing. _“Any who try to ruin it and break the rules…”_

I found myself flickering again, blonde locks falling around my shoulders as a result of this strange dream. Riddle stared me down, expression intense, the teen holding my hand so tight I feared he might break it.

_“...will lose their heads. Do you understand?”_

I couldn’t answer. When I blinked, attempting to recover from this madness, the dorm leader disappeared and I found myself shaking, curling my hands close to my chest. That was… not normal. What is going on? I don’t understand.

I decided to shake it off and instead turned my attention to the voices I heard singing, wandering away and leaving the forest, instead approaching a rather quaint- if not lopsided- house surrounded by hedges. Approaching a tiny gate, I looked over and saw a long dinner table decorated with dozens of chairs and teapots. Those tea pots whistled in tune with what was being sung, and I found myself staring in amazement. An old man sung with a hare, and warm delicious-smelling steam floated above the table, making it hard to see what else was there.

 _“How curious.”_ I murmured, lips and voice moving on their own.

A very merry Unbirthday Party… huh? Here's to hoping everything did go to plan. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're so close, you guys!!!! SO CLOSE! AHHHHH!!!! 
> 
> We gettin' some more Riddle interactions, woo~! Is it a dream? Is it a memory? Hrmmm. Also not gonna lie, I really want the Mickey Mouse in TW to be the same as KH King Mickey, but it's probably gonna be the Mickey from that one Oswald video game considering the deal with all the ink and the overblotting and the- yeah... T_T Oh well. We'll get there when we get there. 
> 
> But also- El backstory pieces! Summary of what's been revealed so far: She was angry as a little kid because of some home stuff, unable to make friends. Then around middle school she started to get sick. High school was where she was finally able to make friends, but after graduation those friends stopped having contact with her, causing her to grow lonely. Then she got her job, though still lacked real friendship outside of the workforce, and was brought to Twisted Wonderland a year later. 
> 
> On a random note, I really need the Pomfiore Arc to come out already so I can write Vil~ T_T I need to know more about this model man. I have ideas, but I can't write them without enough information. Arghhh. Malleus, my man, we're so close to your episode, but you're still so far away. And Idia and Ortho! Precious, baby boys Idia and Ortho! Aghhh.
> 
> (Ahem) A-Anyway, that's it for this chapter, haha. I really appreciate all the love you guys are showing for this story :3 Thank you! Your comments make my day (they make me so happy, no joke; you could write an essay and I would sit there for ten minutes re-reading them because holy crap people actually like my fanfic and Eleanora.) So thank you. <3 <3 <3
> 
> And I hope you all have a wonderful day and/or night where you are, and stay safe! (Send hugs and head pats your way)


	17. The Party Preparations

It was the weirdest dream yet. Perhaps that was because… it was more than a dream? There was a chain, a connection linking me to the child from before. Memories. But there had to be more than just that, as there was no way two people could have the same memory. What exactly was it?

He kept going on about how his mother was a lot like the queen…

Could it be that? I found myself pondering all the different possibilities, watching as the Mad Hatter and March Hare approached, informing me there was no room at the table to sit. This party really was quite strange. There were a ridiculous number of empty chairs, and yet nowhere for me to sit? Bull crap.

I had half a mind to tell them off, but before I could… the world began to shatter again. A hand was on my shoulder, shaking me and trying to wake me up. I grimaced and turned away, trying to tune out the voice and fall back asleep, but the voice only grew louder and the pain in my throat worsened. I coughed, grabbing onto the pillow I was using and pressing it against my face.

“-nora? Eleanora! Supervisor?”

Who keeps talking? I started to grow frustrated, irritated that my sleep was disturbed, dream all but forgotten now. I whirled around to glare and tell the person off for waking me, but right as my mouth opened to speak, I paused. Squinting and yawning loudly, I rubbed at my eyes and blinked, making sure I wasn’t hallucinating. There was a familiar face hovering over me from above.

Deeply confused, I croaked, “D… Deuce?”

He was the last person I was expecting. What on earth was he doing in my dorm…? Ah, wait a second. Sitting up slowly, I groggily looked around, observing the hanging blankets and the pair of mattresses. After a minute I found myself staring blankly at a snoring ginger and the cat monster that was curled up next to him.

Oh. Oh, yeah… that was a thing. The sleepover. Yesterday was such a mess, it all meshed together and I forgot. I yawned loudly, coughing and brushing my bangs back with my fingers. The inside of my chest seriously hurt. There were sharp little pains pricking at my lungs from all over, almost like needles. The same could almost be said for my throat- though it also felt like there was something stuck in it.

I kept coughing, trying to get whatever was stuck removed, and when it failed I decided to just live with the pain. Deuce spoke up once I was done, turning the alarm on his phone off with a yawn of his own. “We need to get ready for the Unbirthday Party. I’ll wake up the others, so you head upstairs and get changed, okay? We’ll lose our heads if we’re late.”

Frick. That was today, wasn’t it? I fell back down onto the mattress with a groan, much to Deuce’s surprise.

“I don’t wanna…”

I’m so freaking tired. It’s not like Riddle can cut off my head anyway; I have no magic. I was safe. Of course, that’s assuming he wouldn’t decide to use some other spell that could hurt me in some way after realizing that his _unique magic_ was worthless as a weapon against me. Maybe he would actually decapitate me? Eugh, okay, nope. No. Never mind.

I shuddered and sat back up. “You know what? I’m awake. Let’s do this.”

I yawned one more time, stretching my arms and legs out, before slumping over and staring at the two idiots who remained asleep. Ace looked so damn peaceful passed out on his front, shirt rolled up halfway and exposing part of his back. Grim was flopped onto his side, tail curled around his body, snoring against the ginger’s lower left leg. I had half a mind to kick both off the bed; they were the ones who got us into this mess. Okay, so it was really only Ace who ticked off the dorm leader, but… I was still salty at Grim for running off yesterday- even if he was behaving now.

I looked up at Deuce, a slight pout on my face. “...Do I really have to get up?”

“Yes.” He said. A small chuckle escaped him. “You’re the supervisor, remember? Who else is going to keep us out of trouble?”

Now he was just making things up. Not _once_ did I keep anyone out of trouble yesterday; in fact, I only seemed to cause it. But sure, whatever. I sighed, pushing myself up. “Fine... I’m up.”

I stretched my arms out, yawning once more before slowly standing on the mattress, wobbling across the beds and walking over the two sleeping boys- making sure not to step on them- so I could access the exit of the fort. I hopped through it and stumbled, coughing a little and staggering as a wave of dizziness washed over me. Too much movement, too fast.

I stood completely still for a moment, waiting for the world to stop spinning, before making my way up the staircase. I rubbed at my throat, wincing a little at the bruises. Unbuttoning the collar as I made my way into the bathroom, I stared with a disturbed expression. It was almost a perfect handprint.

“Ah… Ah…” I practiced raising my voice, seeing what my limitations were. “Ah… Ahem!”

Seriously, what the frick was in my throat? I coughed- a bit more aggressively than usual as I tried to get rid of whatever was bothering me. I leaned over the sink, a hand curled against my chest while my other remained wrapped gingerly around my neck- not quite touching it. Pulling at the fabric of my uniform, I squeezed my eyes shut. The prickly needle-like feeling in my chest worsened, and my coughs started to become more wet and gross.

If my breathing wasn’t already considered bad when I woke up, it definitely was now. I wasn’t even sure if I was inhaling any oxygen at all. I felt so light-headed and dazed, heart beating painfully fast, my skull throbbing as I hunched over, hands forced to grab the ledges of the sink so I wouldn’t fall to the floor. And then finally- after what felt like eternity, certain I was going to black out- I had managed to dislodge the thing in my throat.

It splattered into the sink, the taste of iron on my tongue. I stared for a long time, vision blurred and creating doubles, and as I stood there wheezing I could feel the cogs in my brain turning- horror and understanding dawning on me at the same time, slowly but surely. Red speckled the inside of the sink, coating the white flower petals ominously.

That’s… That’s right. I-I think… I remember now.

My dream from last night…

...and the reason I freaked out in the cafeteria when a certain someone was about to leave.

This was… very much not good. Though numb and a bit shaky, I raised my fingers to my lips and felt the sticky substance, eyes trailing down to look at the blood coating my hand. Like a fool I had failed to follow the advice my new fae friend had given me. I inhaled sharply, knuckles turning pale as tears started to sting my eyes.

Lilia said it would take time for the curse to start affecting my waking self… so why did this feel like it was happening so quickly?

I-I can’t…

I can’t breathe. The rose- he said it was in my mouth, but they’re spreading throughout my lungs, too, right? A-Are the thorns inside me right now? What’s going on?

I’m scared. I don’t understand.

Stiffly releasing the edge of the sink, I stepped away- back hitting the old worn down cabinet behind me. I stared at the red on my fingers, then gazed at the reflection in the mirror- viewing the blood coating my lips.

This wasn’t… supposed to happen. None of this was supposed to happen! I’m not even meant to be in this world a-and… and… now I’m…

Dying?

My brain couldn’t process that. I was aware of the curse, but at the same time it still didn’t feel real to me. At least… not until now. Frick. Forcing my feet to move, I returned to the sink and shakily washed the blood off my fingers and face, proceeding to brush my teeth and get ready for the day. I picked up the petals and threw them away, before heading to my room and getting changed. By the time I was done the boys were heading to the bathroom, and I made my way down to the lounge to wait for them.

I kept a hand wrapped gingerly around my throat, fingers barely even brushing the flesh. It hurt to have the collar against it, so at the moment I kept it partially unbuttoned, the ribbon draped across my shoulders. I could just tie it on the way to Heartslabyul. It was fine. I sighed, leaning back against the couch and attempting to relax, staring at the dusty ceiling and cursing my luck.

Seriously- what led up to this? What did I do that ticked a person off so bad that they decided to curse me?

A sudden knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts. When it didn’t stop I grimaced and slid off the couch, standing and dusting off my skirt, tiredly wandering over and opening the door. To my chagrin Cater was standing there, looking far too cheerful at this time of day.

“Good morning~!” He greeted, smiling bright.

I stared blankly, then- and without any hesitation- closed the door without welcoming him in. The day had just started, but it was already going so wrong. There was no way I could deal with Cater right now, especially since I haven’t even had breakfast yet.

“H-Hey, c’mon on, Ellie~ don’t be like that!” Cater knocked on the door again. “Let me in! Pretty please!? I’m sorry if I bothered you yesterday!”

Bothered was putting it lightly. He made me highly uncomfortable.

“Ellie~!”

Deuce wandered into the room with Ace and Grim right behind him. All three boys looked deeply confused. “Is that… Cater shouting from behind the door?” The blue-haired teen asked. I made a face, leaning back against the wood to prevent the third-year from opening the door.

“...Maybe.” I answered after a moment of silence.

“Deucy?” Cater called out, hearing his voice. “Deucy, are you there!? Can you get El to let me in? Please?”

The blue-haired teen twitched his eyebrow upon hearing the nickname, before sighing and hanging his head. “He won’t ever stop calling me that, will he?”

“Probably not.” Ace stated bluntly, yawning. “He won’t stop shouting either unless we let him in.”

I clicked my tongue in annoyance, despising the fact that he had raised a good point. Deuce walked forward and I begrudgingly stepped aside, letting him open the door and allowing the strawberry blond to enter the rickety old building. Cater beamed, rushing to the boy and tossing his arms around his shoulders happily.

“Thanks!” He cheered, holding the boy tight. “You’re the best, Deucy!” He released the frozen teen, snickering at his startled expression, and then placed his hands on his hips- turning to look at everyone. “So, how was the sleepover? Was it an evening of pillow fights and board games? Did you-”

Cater let out a barrage of questions, speaking excitedly, before abruptly pausing upon catching sight of the giant fort we had made last night. His eyes looked like they were about to bug out of his head. Amused, the third-year raised a hand up to his lips, failing to muffle his laughter.

“I-Is that what I think it is?”

Ace folded his arms over his chest, practically glowering at the upperclassman- daring him to say something. “Yeah, what of it?”

“Nothing, nothing!” Cater rushed out, waving a hand dismissively, grinning ear-to-ear. “It’s cute.” 

“Hmph.” The ginger looked like he was going to throw hands with him before a yawn left his lips, stopping him from doing anything except that. “Aw, just shut up already. But to answer your question, yeah. We played cards.” Ace blinked, yawning a second time as he ruffled his hair, still trying to wake up the rest of the way. “Grim kept… forgetting the rules, so we mostly just stuck with Old Maid.”

The cat monster himself walked up, climbing onto my shoulder and scowling. “I couldn’t win at all!”

“Your poker face is the worst.” Deuce informed with a chuckle, recalling the shenanigans from last night. “The ghosts really had it in for you.”

“Him and Ace.” I snorted. “Moe kept freaking cheating. But it’s okay, because I was the Slap Jack champion!” I weakly threw my hands up in the air, tired yet fully ready to brag about my accomplishments. I wiggled my fingers, smirking. “Like I said; you gotta go fast. And I’m the fastest!”

“Although sometimes you smacked the table before we could even let go of the cards…” Deuce said, fighting an amused smile. “You got way too excited.”

“Right, right. Well, I’m glad to hear you all had fun!” Cater said, clapping his hands together. His smile looked a bit strained. “But now you guys should go and get the apology tart. There was lots of trouble yesterday, so I’m short on manpower and need you all to come with me _now_ before things get worse. ’Kay?”

“...Okay?” That was weird.

Ace seemed to think so as well. “Manpower?”

Cater shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s just hurry to the Unbirthday Party.”

Ah, yes. The dreaded party. This wasn’t going to end well at all. I grimaced, grabbing at my ribbon and begrudgingly tying it while Ace ran off to the kitchen to grab the mont blanc. I stumbled and blinked, coughing quietly, throat feeling mildly relieved now that there weren’t several bloody petals stuck in it. I could seriously go for a drink of water or something right now.

_Tea sounds nice…_

Eyes drooping closed as we left Ramshackle Dorm, I finished tying the bow and carried Grim in my arms, stumbling slightly in my exhaustion. I really didn’t want to be up this early- heck, I was still freaking out about earlier. Would Lilia be able to tell if I hadn’t followed his instructions? I wasn’t even aware I hadn’t been until that bathroom incident happened. Did I ever have control of my dream-self’s actions?

Hrm… this is frustrating. How can I stop chasing the dreams when I can’t even really remember them? There are bits and pieces I can recall, but whenever I focus on them my skull starts throbbing and I get nauseous. I sighed, running my fingers anxiously against the cat monster’s fur. All the stress that had been relieved last night from the card games and jokes seemed to be coming back at full force, weighing down on my shoulders.

Before I realized it had happened we were already at the Hall of Mirrors, the Heartslabyul mirror decor leaving me more than a little disturbed. The first time was unnerving- and now? It just made me want to turn tail and run. Twisted Wonderland was a place I was _not_ meant to be in and the more time I spent here… the more I was sure of it. There was something seriously wrong with this place.

I tried to ignore the eerie similarities between Heartslabyul and the curse, and waited. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears as I watched the boys step through the mirror, heading to the other side, but I found it so hard to follow. Feet resting upon the giant concrete book, my free hand barely touched the rippling glass. Lungs stuttering, I wheezed a little and pushed my fingers into the portal, eyes observing the way the mirror reacted- the slightest bit of pressure pushing back against my hand.

It was… strange. Intriguing. Scary. It rippled so much like water upon a single touch, and yet it felt much more like a thin layer of sludge.

“Human?” Grim asked, looking down at me with a strange expression- as though he wasn’t sure if he should be confused or concerned. “Why aren’t you going in?”

I jumped at the sound of his voice. “H-Huh?” Oh, right. Fick. Okay, calm down. It was only a little blood we threw up this morning; everything was going to be fine. Ignoring the shake in my legs, I pushed my hand the rest of the way through and stumbled into the mirror, letting out a small yelp as my feet missed the book below on the other side. “Whoa-!”

The boys whirled around with wide eyes when they heard my shout, having not expected me to fall the way I did. I yelped and clamped my mouth shut, turning to try and avoid crushing Grim- who was very much digging his claws into my chest as his fur stood on end- and I flinched, gasping as I landed hard on my back, effectively winded from the blow.

“A-Are you okay!?” I heard Cater exclaim. I gave no audible answer, unable to speak as the oxygen failed to enter my lungs. “Holy crap, Ellie!”

Footsteps. Deuce knelt down beside me, panicking, helping me sit up as I coughed and gasped, an arm around my shoulders. “I-I got you. In-and-out. Come on, breathe…!”

“Telling her to breathe isn’t gonna make her breathe, Deuce!” Ace snapped, walking over and squatting down. He pried Grim from my arms, the cat monster’s claws catching on my white top for a second before retracting.

Grim climbed onto the ginger’s head, resting a paw on his hair. “Th-That freaked me out…” He turned to watch as I struggled to recover.

Ace spoke up again, voice stern. “El, hey. _Hey._ Look at me.” I flinched when he snapped his fingers in front of my face, gaze slowly rising to meet his. “How many fingers am I holding up?”

What… the heck? I squinted, waiting for the doubles to disappear and go back into one. I inhaled shakily. “F… Four?”

“Bzzt!” He stuck his tongue out at me, smirking. “Three and a thumb!”

Oh, this freaking jerk-

I weakly raised a hand up and batted both of his down, unimpressed by his joke and snickers as he stood back up and clapped his hands. “Welp, I think it’s safe to say she’s fine!” Ace took the mont blanc back from Cater, who looked a bit stunned by the whole thing. “Let’s go give this tart to Riddle so I can apologize!”

Deuce helped me stand, letting out a heavy sigh of relief. Legs still a bit shaky, I clung to his arm. “As long as you’re okay…”

“...S-S’fine.” I choked out.

“Yoooo!” Cater suddenly shouted. All four us, except Cater himself, paused and turned to look at the strawberry blond- but he wasn’t moving. We then looked in the direction the voice was actually coming from, deeply confused and very alarmed to see someone identical to him running our way. “I’ve been waiting for me to show up!”

“Th… There’s two of them.” I stammered, eyes growing wide.

Oh, _gods,_ no. Why? How come this world hated me so much? The new Cater was dressed in his gym uniform, covered in red paint and waving a hand in the air. The Cater that was currently standing next to us, wearing his school uniform, raised his own hand in greeting, flashing an apologetic grin. “I’m back~ sorry about the wait, me!”

“Wh-Why are there are two Caters!?” Deuce cried out in his alarm.

I groaned, hanging my head and burying my face in my free hand. “Today can’t get any worse, can it?”

Ace looked just as freaked out. “S-Since when did you have a twin!?”

The two strawberry blonds laughed at our reactions, and the first waved his hand dismissively. “No, no. I’m the only brother. This is my _unique magic:_ Split Card!” He snapped my his fingers, gesturing dramatically to the second Cater. “I can use it to make several clones of myself!”

Hold up; that was a thing? That was a thing he could do?

How do they know which is the real one? Have the clones ever grown independent from the original, causing chaos in their determination to be seen as true? If that was the case, why would Cater be creating more clones? Which Cater here _is_ the real one? Oooh, I don’t like this. I need to stop thinking. I’ve clearly watched one too many anime.

“Wait a second!” Deuce suddenly said, his eyes growing wide. “Is that why we couldn’t beat you back then? Every time it seemed like we were winning… you’d get right back up at full strength. Were we fighting your clones!?”

The second Cater winked, and then- as if on script- a third and fourth pair of Caters came waltzing into view from the hedge maze, waving and smiling bright. “Welcome back~!” The third said.

The fourth blew a small kiss in my direction. “Welcome to Heartslabyul, Ellie~!” I made a face and leaned back, attempting to dodge the invisible heart being blown my way. “Aww~ so cold!”

The second Cater sighed dramatically, placing a hand on his hip while balancing the paint brush in his other. He completely ignored the little interaction that just happened. He looked at us, pouting. “I’ve had it _so_ rough with just me; you’re all super duper late! Why didn’t you come earlier?”

Ace yelped, stepping back and almost hiding behind me as he held the mont blanc close to his chest. “There’s more of them!” How many are there? Jeez. One was bad enough, but four? No thank you. I can barely handle the original. “Make it stop!”

What on earth did he expect me to do? I flashed him a weird look, looking at him from over my shoulders. I was quite a few inches shorter than him; why on earth was he using me as a shield? It isn’t very effective. I shook my head, returning to my previous bewilderment.

The Caters laughed at our reactions, and the second Cater held up two fingers- flashing a peace sign and winking. “By the way, I’m the real one. The more copies I make the harder it gets to control them, and as a result I can’t keep the magic up for very long. I have them helping me because we need to hurry with the preparations or else it’s “off with our heads” for being late! And since I don’t have enough hands, I’ll need you guys to lend me yours. I’m not nearly enough, even with three other me’s.”

I hate everything about this.

Seeing my sour expression and the annoyed glare Ace was sending him, Cater- the supposedly _real_ one- crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll take you all to Riddle once we’re done; I promise!”

Grim scowled from his spot on Ace’s head. He could already tell where this was going. “We have to paint more roses, don’t we?”

“You’re really arrogant,” Ace accused of the strawberry blond, “you know that, right?”

The real Cater just giggled. “How about we get started? The paint cans are over this way!”

Though none of us were happy about this development, we still followed the third-year into the hedge maze where several rose trees needed painted. The first Cater rushed over and picked up some brushes, handing them over to us magicless folk. Ace and I were not pleased. “We’ve got this, you guys! It’ll be great.”

The real Cater pulled out his magical pen, and upon seeing this Deuce and the other remaining Caters followed suit. “Same as last time; Deucy, Grim- you’re with me. Ace and Ellie, you two get those trees! Ah, but we might want to set that mont blanc down somewhere safe… hmm.”

The fourth Cater looked at him, pointing at a nearby ladder. “Why not on top of that? Ants won’t get to it easily in that spot.”

“Perfect! Now, you all take care of the roses next to me; okay, freshies?”

I stared blankly at the brush in my hands, frustrated at him and his clones for roping us into painting again. I haven’t even had breakfast this morning. People will _not_ like dealing with me until I’ve had my morning breakfast. People shouldn’t even try having a conversation with me until I’ve eaten. Now I’m being forced to paint white roses red again? Roses, who I might add, deserved way better than to be drowned by thick globs of paint?

Paint that… looks hauntingly like blood.

I remembered what happened in the bathroom and cringed, begrudgingly sticking the brush into the can and wandering over to the nearby rose bush. Ace huffed, just as a bitter. “I’m gettin’ real tired of all this manual labor.” He grumbled.

Deuce shook his head. “Nothing will get done if we complain. Let’s just get it over with.”

“True facts…” I sighed.

This felt like an awful lot of effort to get a stupid collar removed. I don’t even think I put this much effort into my studies back when I was in school. I mean, I paid enough attention to pass my classes- which I did- although math was not salvageable. I still remember that large “F” written on my elementary school test that set off the downfall of my mathematical skills.

I grimaced at the memory. Adults placed so much expectation on you, yet never helped when you actually needed it. It was even worse if you were considered a gifted child- the expectations grew tenfold and you almost start to believe the praise, but then you get older and realize you don’t actually have any idea what you’re supposed to do with your life. The expectations wear you down.

Before you know it you’re just a nineteen-year-old human with the attention span of a squirrel. You get constantly sick because of a medical condition that’s so far out of your control it’s unreal, and you believe your only worth is in your art skills. And now… I’m not even sure I have that anymore.

I’m not… really sure _what_ I have.

Damn it.

I need to eat breakfast…

“I wanna praise you for finding a way to get everyone to work,” The third Cater commented with a raised brow, talking to Deuce, “but at this rate the roses will all wilt before we’re done. So let’s go, go, go!”

“Hup two, three, four!” The real Cater joked, waving his magical pen in the air and turning a white rose red. “Let’s go!”

“Fine…” Deuce muttered, eyebrows furrowing as he started to focus, holding his pen out at the bush in front of him. “Come on… red, red, red…! Come on- _whoa!”_ He yelped when a light burst out of his pen and hit the rose, and he stared in surprise at the color. “It worked!? I actually did it!”

“Lookin’ good!” The second Cater cheered, he and the other clones magically changing the other flowers. “You’re doing great!”

“Keep it up and we’ll be done before the tea party starts!” The real Cater exclaimed.

This was going to be a _long_ morning. I paused in my painting when I heard Grim panicking. He was completely freaking out in the background as he tried to use magic to paint the roses. I watched him intently, observing, and almost smiled when he cast the spell properly. “O-Of course I did it correctly!” He declared, trying to write off his earlier panic. “I am Grim the Great! A genius!”

The Caters laughed.

“Yup! You’re on such a roll!” The real one complimented.

Ace sighed, slabbing paint on the flowers. “Such a pain… this collar just keeps getting heavier, too, I swear. I’m gonna have a serious neck cramp by the time it gets removed.”

“Then don’t go ticking people off.” I deadpanned. He sent me the stink eye, annoyed that I was no longer taking his side- though I never really did in the first place- and in response I flashed him a lazy, toothy grin. My eyes closed as I leaned my head back, and careful not to drop the brush or get paint on my uniform I poked my cheeks with my index fingers. I joked, “Love you~!”

“I’mma hurl paint at you.”

“Aw, and here I thought we were friends.” I then dropped the smile, staring blankly at him. “Seriously though- throw paint at me, I throw paint back.”

I was not in the mood to deal with this crap. I. Demand. Breakfast! It is the most important meal of the day, and I need it to function at a decent enough level. I will throw hands with anyone if they act mildly annoying right now. Ace, as much as I enjoyed being around him, was no exception.

His lips curled up in a smirk. “Oooh~ is that a threat, _Supervisor?”_

My fingers twitched. I was seriously debating flicking the paint on the brush at him. “More like a promise, _Asshole.”_

We found ourselves staring at each other after I said that, the deja vu strong. His lips twitched upwards into a huge grin as he started shaking, laughter erupting from deep inside his chest. I tried not to snicker, biting my trembling bottom lip as I recalled the way we first met and how similar a certain conversation was to this one, but it failed. Before long we were both giggling and laughing, tears stinging my eyes both from amusement and pain, and Ace wheezed.

“H-Holy shit,” He gasped, “was that… was that seriously only two days ago!?”

“Y-You mean… when I threatened to make… to make you slip on mop water…!?”

“Yeah!”

Dude, my lungs were killing me right now. I coughed, face contorting in pain as my free hand coiled around my wounded throat. “N-Not… gonna lie. I-I really...… wanted to smack you!” The laughter hurts. It feels so stress relieving, but it’s so painful at the same time. “You were… You were acting like such a jerk then!”

“I already told you,” He snorted, starting to calm down some, “I’m an asshole. Just be glad you’re stuck with me and none of the wolves, Miss Adult.”

Still coughing and struggling to recover, I halfheartedly stuck my tongue out at him. “Blegh~! Never.”

“Oi, watch it! My threat still stands.” He narrowed his eyes and waved his paint brush in the air. “I won’t hesitate.”

I snorted, getting into a battle stance. “On garde, sir!”

Hardly any oxygen was getting through my lungs, but I kept going. I ignored the dizziness and the pain, mind only focused on this playful banter. I swear, the more time I spent with these two teens the dumber and more reckless I was getting, or maybe I had just long-forgotten what it was like to actually have fun until meeting them. Whatever the case, it now led to me swinging my brush at the ginger, who quickly blocked the attack with his own.

“You’re never gonna finish painting your roses!” Ace declared. “Not with those crappy moves!”

“Oho~ wanna bet? I challenge thee, sir, to a duel!”

“A duel?” 

“Yes! A duel of paint! O-Of painting… the roses red! Lest I bite my thumb, sir!”

“You bite your thumb?”

“No, sir! I do not bite my thumb, but I will bite my thumb at you, sir!”

Ace squinted. “...I don’t get it.”

I slouched over, wheezing, letting out a small sigh of exasperation as I hung my head. “O-Of course you don’t. Don’t… Don’t worry about it. Let’s just… finish painting.” I feel like I’m about to pass out. Breathe, girl. I inhaled sharply, struggling to regain control of the oxygen flow as I went back to work.

Ace stared for a moment before shrugging. “Whatever. I’ll still paint faster than you.”

...Okay. Now it was _on._ No breakfast means me being mildly unhinged, and that means no holding back on competition. He wants to go? We’ll go. I’ll freaking throw hands if need be. I dipped the brush in the paint can and got to work- ignoring the need to be a precise as possible due to my inner artist- and slopped as much red paint on the white flowers as possible.

The Caters saw us getting to work and cheered, praising us on our diligence. After a few minutes the two of us were done with our trees, and I was finally able to plop onto the ground for a short rest. Ace raised an eyebrow, only to have realization soon hit him. He frowned, walking over and sitting down next to me.

“You okay?” He asked. I gave a tired shrug. My throat and lungs needed a break. The ginger’s expression darkened. “If it gets hard on you, just say so. You’re not like the rest of us.”

I feel as though I should be offended, but I honestly just don’t care. I fell back, collapsing onto the grass with a small yawn. “Sorry…” I murmured, voice quiet.

“Whatever.” He poked my leg with his foot. “Honestly, to think I’m stuck with _two_ super serious goody-two-shoes… ugh. How the hell did that happen?”

Ace knew very well how it happened.

“...Hey, Eleanora.”

Whoa. I opened my eyes, turning my head to look at him in surprise. He used my full first name.

Ace wasn’t looking at me. His eyes were trained on the others, watching them paint and struggle to cast magic. The ginger’s arms were draped in his lap, the boy now sitting cross-legged on the ground. “Do you really think Riddle will accept the tart?”

That was a first. I slowly pulled myself back up, scooting closer to the ginger. Feeling me nudge his arm with my elbow, he finally turned to look down at me, red eyes widening when he saw the small smile on my face. “Only an idiot wouldn’t.”

Ace smirked. “True. That other mont blanc we baked before tasted _heavenly.”_

I mean, it was pretty good… for something meant to be sweet. “You also… worked really hard on it. You’re “returning” what was “stolen” and doing exactly as the law said, so… if he doesn’t forgive you- well, I already said you could join Ramshackle.”

He blinked. “Ramshackle? Pfft-! Did you seriously name that dusty old building?”

I stuck out my tongue again. “What’d you expect? It felt weird being in an unnamed dorm.”

“That’s fair.” The ginger suddenly raised his hands up, cupping them around his mouth as he shouted at the others, “Oi, Deuce, hurry it up! I want to get this collar off before the day’s over!”

“Sh-Shut up! I’m going as fast as I can!” The blue-haired teen snapped, cheeks a little pink in embarrassment as he struggled in casting his spells.

The Caters all laughed again, casting their spells and finishing up two other trees. The real Cater, the one who was helping Deuce and Grim, tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. “Now, now, everyone! Play nice! We’re making great progress.”

“I’m on the last one…” Deuce murmured, looking exhausted. “Turn red, turn red… please…! Aha!”

“We did it!” Grim cheered, throwing his paws up. “We’re finally done!”

Ace groaned, throwing his hands up and falling onto his back. “It’s about time!” He then sat back up, starting to stand. He flashed the strawberry blond a glare, daring him to give us more chores. “This means there’s _nothing else_ to complain about- right, Cater?”

The third-year hummed, his clones all observing our handiwork. “Let’s see~!” He tapped a finger against his chin, pretending to think. “Yup, yup. You all did great! Gold stars for everyone!” He clapped his hands together, praising us. “Good work, freshies~! Riddle is going to be so happy now.”

Deuce wandered over, huffing, utterly exhausted from all that magic casting. If I understood correctly, casting spells required a lot of imagination and creativity, and this teen… wasn’t exactly the brightest. Deuce, the poor boy, must be extremely drained from all the mental effort he had to put in to paint those roses. He deserved some head pats. “We did… a lot better… than yesterday!”

“Yup! I’m proud of you.” The real Cater said, grinning. He then reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone and looking at the time. He balked. “C-Crap! We’re seriously pushing it close…”

He pocketed the device and his magical pen, turning to his clone.

“Okay, me’s, you all did great! Unfortunately, it’s time to go. Thanks for your help!”

“Aye-aye, sir! Anytime!” They all said, sharing identical grins as they vanished into sparks. “Bye~!”

I shakily stood, deeply creeped out by that. Ace tossed our paintbrushes into the cans, and Cater hurriedly disposed of them- carrying them into the Heartslabyul dorm and rushing back to the maze. Once he returned, he proceeded to guide us through the maze- mont blanc in hand. I followed behind at a much slower pace, unable to move as fast since I was still recovering, and after a good two minutes of walking we all found ourselves standing in a… tea garden?

No. That doesn’t even begin to describe it.

It was… madness. Complete and total madness; like something from a dream. My head began to throb and I stumbled, the world momentarily spinning. I wasn’t sure if I was hearing sirens or if it was just the trumpets being a little too loud, but I was unable to figure it out as I became distracted by all the insane decoration going on. I was never a real party person; in fact, I never really went anywhere unless it was for band events back when I was in school, and once I graduated I had stopped. But this…?

Oh, man. Whoever was in charge went all out.

There were stacks of tea cups that went up to at least two feet, resting atop the tables, and some even had hats dangling off of them. Cakes, too, and those pastries were far from plain. One was three layers tall, with candles and cups and a very large top hat, and propped up against a table was a tower of books. And on that tower of books were mini chairs, all sitting rather precariously. It actually gave me anxiety just looking at them, as I feared that they could fall at any moment.

The wildest part, though?

There was a _flamingo_ in the back, wandering around with a bored look on its face. I… I have no idea what I was supposed to be looking at; there was way too much happening at once. Heck, there were rows of candles lining some tables, and those tables had rose vines draped along the edges.The flowers dripped with red paint, yet no one seemed to notice.

With all these hats… one would think it was a tea party for a mad hatter.

_Ba-thUMP._

I choked, blood running cold. Little stabbing pains erupted inside my chest and it took everything I had not to burst into another coughing fit, tears stinging my eyes as bile bubbled up the back of my throat, the taste of iron strong on my tongue. I forcibly swallowed everything back down, breath coming out in stuttered bursts as I tried to calmly regain control of my bearings. I was… I was not going to ruin this.

Ace was doing that apology. He put in too much effort for me to screw it all up.

A student walked over to an arch, now being the only one to play a trumpet. After blowing a few notes, he wheezed and lowered the instrument to his side, gesturing to the entrance. “A-Announcing our great leader, known as the crimson ruler _and_ the dorm leader of Heartslabyul: Riddle~!” The students began to cheer, forcing themselves to sound as enthusiastic as possible. When I turned to watch Riddle make his way into the tea garden, I found myself growing nauseous.

That outfit…

I’ve seen it before. The black-and-red cape dragged behind him, draped over a single shoulder. A little crown rested atop his head, giving off the appearance of royalty, and his crimson make-up only made his storm grey eyes stand out more. A single fake white rose sat pinned to his cape, covered in faux paint. And that top he was wearing… white and intricately decorated with all sorts of ornaments; it was all so familiar to me.

How he ever managed to walk in those thigh-high heeled boots, though, I will never know. They made him stand up around the height of five-foot-five, despite him being five-two like I was. This person… who was he, really? He was definitely connected to my missing memories; more specifically, the ones about the Queen of Hearts. Riddle…

Just what is your connection to her? Is it the laws?

Riddle’s eyes observed the area, the boy humming to himself as he took in the party decor. “The roses are red and the tablecloths are white… truly a perfect Unbirthday Party.” He looked up at Trey, narrowing his eyes with a small frown. “You made sure there’s a mouse asleep in the teapot, correct?”

“Of course.” The third-year said, pushing up his glasses with a small smirk. “The jam to put on its nose is also ready.”

“Good.” His hard expression softened, and he turned back to the party at hand- speaking with several other students.

I seriously feel like I’m about to throw up. I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply as I waited for my heart rate to slow. I could taste iron again, the blood and vomit burning my throat, and I grimaced, bringing a hand up to my lips. I took a bit, but I finally managed to focus on just recovering- the headache that had started forming disappearing once I quit concentrating so much on the redheaded dorm leader.

I wonder… could this be considered chasing the dreams? I had no control over of my sleeping self, but my waking self kept getting sick constantly due to thinking too much about it all. Such a pain; why is following instructions so much harder than expected? Lilia isn’t going to be very happy with me later.

“Fuwaaah!” Grim squealed, jumping onto my shoulder and pawing at my cheek, his blue eyes wide. “Look at their outfits, human! Look! They’re so cool!”

“Huh? O-Oh, yeah.” He wasn’t wrong. I never really cared much for the color red, even with recent events giving me more reason to dislike it, but the uniforms were pretty awesome. A lot of creativity and effort went into designing them, and whoever came up with them deserved a lot of praise. The people who actually sewed them must have been paid a fortune. “I like that the vests are different colors.”

Some wore red, some wore a dark grey- it all depended on which color card suit was painted on their face. And hearing our conversation was Cater- the strawberry blond beaming brightly at the compliments.

“Heehee~ the dorm uniforms here are the best! The style is on point _and_ it makes for great magicame photos!” Cater exclaimed, only to suddenly reach into his pocket and pull out his magical pen. “That reminds me- it’s time for a costume change! Tada~!”

He waved the pen and a bright flash of light occurred, nearly blinding us. I quickly covered my eyes, remembering what happened yesterday morning in the potions classroom. When I could see again, I was only partially surprised to see Cater dressed in attire matching the other students- his vest red to match the diamond on his cheek.

“The Queen of Hearts’ law states that we have to dress formally on party days,” He told us, grinning, “and as a special service… since I’m such an awesome older brother to my adorable little freshman… I’ll help you guys get dressed! Here.”

Cater waved the pen again, and there was another flash of light. Grim yelped while Ace and Deuce jumped, and I hurriedly closed my eyes until the glow faded. When I looked again, I was startled to see that even _I_ got a uniform; albeit tight in some places, since it was meant for a more masculine body. I was a little surprised by the red vest, seeing as I lacked a card suit.

I tried to ignore the small surge of happiness I felt, knowing I had been included with the rest of the students. Actually, why did my face feel so heavy? I scrunched up my nose, blinking when I noticed that- yes, my eyelids were a bit heavier than usual. When I went to nibble on my bottom lip out of habit, I realized I was actually wearing lipstick.

Oh gods, that’s weird. Not a bad weird- just… weird. I only ever wore make-up in special occasions back home, and that was incredibly rare. It was a pain to take off and it felt like it got in the way a lot, so I just never dealt with it normally.

“Ah! I look great!” Grim exclaimed, sharp teeth bared in a wide grin. His raggedy old striped bow had been switched with one that was more party appropriate for Heartslabyul, red-and-black with a golden trim, patterned with white diamonds. His blue eyes looked up at me. “Whoa; you match Ace now, human!”

Huh? I looked at the ginger in question, deeply confused, and noticed he had an extra bit of red eye shadow on. Ace laughed. “Dude, check me out!” He placed a hand on his hip, striking a pose while being careful not to drop the mont blanc. “I’m hot stuff, haha!”

Deuce looked down at himself, gasping at the fanciful attire. “Oooh~! This is so different from the school uniform! Eleanora, you got one too?” He looked at me, his eyes growing wide. “Huh? You’re an ace suit?”

I am so confused. Ace turned his head, breaking out into snickers when he saw the make-up on my face. He pointed at the eye that had a heart painted on it. “We match! Pfft-! Ahahaha!” I scowled, shooting him a sour expression. He wandered over, flicking me on the forehead. “Red is _so_ not your color.”

“Glad we agree on something.” I deadpanned. “But, in case you didn’t know, clothes are supposed to make the man. Or woman, I guess. Or… person. Yeah. Clothes make the person.”

He snorted at me. Rude.

Actually, was it really okay that I was wearing a dorm uniform that didn’t belong to me? I wasn’t even a Heartslabyul student. I raised a hand up to my throat, finding my neck suddenly exposed now that I was in this outfit. It felt so much better now that it wasn’t being constricted by a collar and ribbon. Man, magic was…

It was still something I needed to adjust to.

Deuce’s eyes drifted to the bruises and he frowned, expression darkening just slightly, before he shook his head and looked around the room. “Heartslabyul is even fancier than I thought it’d be…”

“Okay, you guys!” Cater suddenly said, catching our attention now that we were done admiring the outfits. “Let’s not forget to give Riddle the mont blanc. It’s time… to party~!”

Oof. Awkward socializing with people time. Got it. I think I’ll just hide behind Deuce and Ace until it's over. Gods, I hated social gatherings. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With any luck, we'll be having a VERY certain someone showing up next chapter (Wink wink) I mean, you all can probably guess who since he's the character I draw the most out of all the twst boys on tumblr, so I have my work cut out for me in getting them to interact, but uh... yeah. Fufufu~ cryptic yet totally not subtle at all laughter~! 
> 
> ANYWAY! WE'RE ALMOST THERE! SO CLOSE! 
> 
> And ruh-roh. El is spitting out petals irl now. That's not a good sign. I wonder how long can she keep hiding that, or if she hides it at all. She's starting to figure things out with Riddle, it seems, so it'll be interesting in how she'll handle the Overblot when that occurs. :3 What do you guys think? El is a child at heart, lol. She just wants to have fun and be able to move around like most people. We also got some Ace and Eleanora bonding this chapter, since we had Deuce and Eleanora bonding the other chapter. They're more banter/roughhouse in their friendship, while Eleanora and Deuce are more... um... less mean to each other, I guess??? They're the "try to be responsible" ones. I don't really know how to describe it. XD 
> 
> Ace and Grim are the ones who get into trouble, Deuce tries to pretend he's above getting into trouble but still gets into it anyway, and Eleanora is the one who genuinely does try to avoid it but gets dragged into trouble by the other two anyway. 
> 
> Anyway, are you guys excited!? :D This chapter took a while, but hopefully you all like it. Trying to readjust to work had me worn out. I'm almost back on a proper sleep schedule now, haha.


	18. The Crimson Tyrant

Deuce didn’t seem to mind much as I clung to the back of his jacket, following him around like a lost duckling with Grim resting on my shoulder. It felt really weird wearing another dorm’s uniform. I hoped there wasn’t an actual rule against it, or everything was going to go downhill quick once Riddle saw me.

“Eleanora?”

I tensed- hearing my name get called. _Frick._ It was almost as if my thoughts had alerted him to my presence. Not good.

Suddenly feeling extremely nervous, I released my hold on Deuce and turned around, flashing Riddle an awkward smile, waving. Surprise flashed across his features, and as he started to head in my direction his expression started to soften. “I thought that was you.”

“Y-Yeah…” I raised a hand up, ruffling the hair on the back of my head.

From behind the redhead I could see Cater, and the strawberry blond made his way over to us. He flashed a quick grin at Riddle before linking his arm with a startled Deuce, free hand snatching Grim by the bow. “Sorry, dorm leader! Sorry, Ellie! I gotta borrow these two real quick!”

What? My eyes went wide as I watched them run off, now effectively alone as the third-year stole away my only means of defense. I was definitely screwed now. Traitors!

Riddle narrowed his eyes at the trio, seeing them heading over to a table decorated with several cakes. Realizing I had to act _now_ before everything fell apart, I turned back to the redhead and clapped my hands together, catching his attention. “I-It’s nice seeing you again! I, uh, hope the sugar cube fiasco went all right?”

In the back I could see Trey watching us, the third-year simultaneously keeping an eye out in case the redhead started to lose his temper and making sure the other students remained well-behaved. Cater was doing the same, though mostly had his attention focused on Ace, Deuce, and Grim- hiding the mont blanc until it was time to act.

“Yes… and I made sure the one who forgot to refill the sugar pot was properly punished.” A small smile formed on his lips, his eyelashes fluttering as he looked down at me. He seemed pleased by something. “It’s good to see you again as well, Eleanora. Although, I must admit; I wasn’t expecting you to show up at this Unbirthday Party.”

“Y-Yeah, that’s…” I hesitated, wondering what all I could tell him. Maybe I could try warming him up to the idea of accepting a certain apology? As terrifyingly strict as he could be, he did appear to like me. Trey and Cater even said that he did. People probably weren’t too friendly with him because of the rules he enforced, and since I had tried to make friends with him before… yeah. Okay. I can do this. Gods, it’s too early in the day for this kind of thing. “I mean, it’s a long story.”

“Oh?” He propped a hand on his hip, resting all of his weight onto his right foot. He gripped the staff to his side, an object that matched perfectly with the outfit he was wearing. The top jewel reminded me of the magic crystals that the magical pens were made with. It was the same shade of red as well. “Do tell.”

I cleared my throat, “W-Well, uh… a while back someone showed up at my dorm demanding help, and… one thing led to another… so now I’m here. He’s _really_ determined to make things right with the person he wronged.”

Riddle narrowed his eyes. “I see.”

This was a really bad idea. Cater, why did you leave me by myself!? I can’t do this! “Y-Yup. Uh, this is… this is a really great party you’ve got going, by the way. The decor is amazing.” This was so nerve-wracking. The headache I had wasn’t helping either, and the more I spoke to Riddle the worse it got.

I mean, the outfit didn’t look bad on him; on the contrary, he actually looked really beautiful. I always thought he was pretty, but dressed up like this, with full make-up and the fancy attire, he almost looked like a doll. Yet that outfit, this appearance of his that I was now seeing, left me feeling so dazed and nauseous because of how _familiar_ it was.

“Yes. It’s a perfect Unbirthday Party, don’t you think?” He smiled, humming and looking around the area. “I do wish I was informed of your attendance, but… well- it can’t be helped. I am simply relieved you are dressed according to the rules.”

“O-Oh, right, yeah.” I looked down, tugging at the vest I was wearing. “Cater said something about formal wear, so… he helped me and the others out.”

Riddle paused. “Cater did? What others?”

Crap. This is why leaving me alone with him was a bad idea. “Uh, well, there’s… Deuce. Grim, too, since… we make a whole student and I’m basically his babysitter. Headmaster gave me the title of “Supervisor” and everything. I’m also supervising another student, kinda? A very specific one who _really_ wants to apologize to you for his bad behavior, so… he’s here.”

I cleared my throat, wincing a little as I did so. The action did not go unnoticed by Riddle, who had been eyeing the hand-shaped bruise on my throat for quite a while now. It seemed he was waiting for the proper time to ask about it.

“Long story short, he baked a tart to replace the one that was eaten. Trey helped with the baking since, you know, we wanted it to actually be a _good_ apology tart. Also we helped Cater paint some roses yesterday, and on our way here today. And since we wanted the party be… perfect, he helped give us some formal wear to change into.”

“For someone not of Heartslabyul, you’ve been doing an awful lot to assist the students of this dorm.” Riddle commented, raising his eyebrows in surprise.

Yeah. Tell me about it. I tilted my head, resisting the urge to worry my bottom lip. This make-up was annoying me. “They… help me too, though. So… it works, I think.”

“Is that so? Well, regardless, for someone unfamiliar with this world, your diligence and hard work is something to be respected. Others should look to you as an example. As I mentioned before, you could stand to be a little more strict, as then you wouldn’t be dragged into any schemes by those troublemakers, but I suppose you’re doing your best. It isn’t like you have any magic, so if they become upset with you there would be no way to defend yourself.”

Now we’re back to that again. I’m really starting to detest magic, I swear. I don’t think Riddle meant any harm in bringing up my inability to use it, but it was starting to grate on my nerves. I watched as he stepped forward, the redhead directly in front of me now. His heels gave him an extra height boost, allowing him to look down at me, leaving me slightly more intimidated than usual.

I have no idea what he thought it was I had done or what he thought I was like, but there must be some serious misunderstanding going on if he really thought I was as responsible as he believed. Trey wasn’t kidding when he said I left some kind of first impression on Riddle, because while he was slightly terrifying he was also being rather nice…?

“There are no female uniforms,” Riddle suddenly said, changing the subject and leaving me momentarily confused, his storm grey eyes boring into my own brown ones, “so unfortunately you will have to make do with the one Cater gave you. I’ll see about speaking to the headmaster about it. You _are_ a student here, after all, despite not truly belonging to a dorm. And since there are no rules against it, you are free to come to the Unbirthday Parties as an honorary guest.”

“O-Oh…” I blinked, stunned. “Thank you…”

Holy frick. That smile he just gave- it was cutest, purest thing I’ve ever seen. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so happy in the short time I’ve known him. “Of course. I can’t have my honored guest be uncomfortable, can I? A lady should be allowed to relax at a tea party. Although, I must ask…” His soft expression faded, transforming into something a bit more stern- if not mad. “Where did you get those bruises?”

Ah, there it is. I tried not to think about it too much, hand slowly rising up to my throat to try and hide the bruises. “It was… um…”

“Riddle!” Trey, bless his soul, called out to the redhead, probably to distract him. He walked over quickly, using his long legs to his advantage. “I have a question about the cakes I baked earlier! Have you tried any of them yet? I’ve been rather worried about their taste this time…”

Riddle closed his eyes and shook his head. “You cakes are always perfect, Trey. There is nothing to be worried about.”

“Yes, you’re… you’re right, but…” He hesitated. His amber eyes flickered towards me and then back at the redhead. “I really feel like you should try them. At least one- to be safe.”

“I trust your skills, Trey.” Riddle informed. “We can wait until the toast to eat them. At the moment, I am having a conversation with Eleanora. Oh, she did mention you earlier, didn’t she? Do you happen to know where she got those bruises?”

I cringed. Trey turned his head away, pushing his glasses up uncomfortably. “There was… an accident with a Savanaclaw student.”

Riddle stared for a moment, seeing the way the man started to shift his eyes back-and-forth between us. “I see… you know, there is no reason to fret, Trey. I am not angry; not with her or with you. I am merely concerned.”

He raised a gloved hand up as if to silence the older teen, seeing him ready to open his mouth and say something else. Riddle flashed him a look.

“As a dorm leader, if something has happened to her- she who was brought here mistakenly by the school- then I must know. Measures must be taken to ensure the safety of one who is unable to protect themselves, and as she is sickly and without magic… it goes without saying she is in great need of help.”

Twice. That’s twice now he’s brought up my lack of my magical ability- and in the same conversation, too. Ouch. I mean, he’s not wrong, but ouch. Do I really seem that pathetic to others? Was not having magic such a bad thing in the eyes of the people from this world? Man, no wonder Ace and Deuce are so protective; they probably view me as a bird born without wings, or something of the sort.

I remember Deuce saying how, back in middle school, he used his magic to bully those who couldn’t…

Heck, Grim and Ace bullied me at first because of it.

Hearing Riddle’s words, almost seeming to relax upon understanding the boy’s intentions, the third-year bowed his head, tipping his hat to cover the upper half of his face. “Yes, dorm leader… my apologies. I misunderstood.”

“You are forgiven.” Riddle waved him off. “Now go- it’s almost time for the toast. Tea must be poured into all the cups.”

“Yes… I will get right to it.” Trey left, off to do as told, flashing me an apologetic smile. The dorm leader then turned his attention back to me, and I tried to regulate my breathing- not wanting to seem afraid of him.

“Now, as we were saying…?”

I tensed, nervously lowering my heads from my throat and staring at the scars covering my palms and knuckle instead, massaging them with my thumbs. “There was an accident with a Savanaclaw student?” His expression hardened. “I-It was literally just an accident; I swear. W-We were getting ingredients for the tart, but there was a lot to carry so I went to go find something to help and… I-I might have… stepped on someone’s tail?”

My voice squeaked near the end and I cringed, ducking my head.

“H-He was taking a nap behind some bushes, so I didn’t see him, a-and… and I didn’t think to look for a tail, because _why_ would someone just leave their tail on the ground?” I made a face, moving my hands about rapidly as I spoke. “Next thing I knew, he was all… angry a-and growling and… and then…”

A gloved hand on my shoulder had me inhale sharply, snapping me out of my growing panic. I looked up with wide eyes, trying to remember how to breathe. Riddle frowned deeply, storm grey eyes intense. “It is alright, Eleanora. You’re safe now. I do find it a little hard to believe someone from Savanaclaw would harm a woman, especially if they were a student who had been raised in the Afterglow Savana, but… it isn’t impossible. I’m glad you confided in me about this. Do you happen to remember who the person was? What he looked like?”

This was the part I wanted to avoid.

Leona had helped me back at the entrance ceremony and Trey even commented that he probably only hurt me because he was half-asleep, and if I told Riddle about what happened and Leona got into trouble for it…

Well, I really didn’t want to deal with any consequences.

_Riddle is a super powerful mage though, right?_

He also seemed to like me, for whatever reason, and he made it clear that he felt some strange need to protect me. Plus, even if Leona wasn’t really awake yet… that didn’t give him an excuse to hurt me. If I had been anything other than female, chances are he would have taken out a tooth and finished crushing my windpipe. He had been fully intent on hurting me. I barely got away with my life.

And that kind of cruelty, that kind of personality… was not something that could be forgiven just because of some cultural respect for women. He can drink all the respect women juice he wants; it doesn’t change the fact that he’s a terrible person to everyone else. I had gotten lucky and that was it.

Shuddering a little at the memory of how he had pinned me to the tree, his fangs bared and ready to tear through flesh, I took a deep breath and grabbed my fingers- trying to stop the trembling.

“S-So… Grim and Trey can confirm this, a-and so can Cater, I guess, but um… it was actually… the dude with the scar? Super tall lion man?”

His eyes went wide. “Leona!?”

“Y-Yeah. Trey thinks… Trey thinks it was because Leona was half-asleep, but…” I lowered my head, giving a half-hearted shrug. “I dunno. I think I just made him mad.”

Riddle looked as though he were going to turn red with rage, gripping his staff so tightly his hand was shaking. “That lazy brute… to think I had actually thought him capable of _some_ kindness! He won’t get away with this. I will inform the teachers. A _Kingscholar_ such as himself should know better. Hmph! Eleanora...”

I tensed. “Y-Yes?”

He fixed me with an intense stare, removing his hand from my shoulder, placing it over his own as he held the staff in front of him. “If you ever encounter trouble again, come to me. As you have no means to defend yourself, Heartslabyul will be your shield. Do you understand?”

That startled me. I jolted, leaning back slightly as he suddenly grew a lot more authoritative and scary. “Uh, y-yes, sir! Th… Thank you…?”

He nodded firmly, then paused. Riddle reached into his vest, pulling out a small pocket watch and flipping it open. His eyes narrowed. “Just a few more minutes until the croquet match. Trey should be finished filling the tea cups by now…” He pocketed the watch, smiling at me with a much gentler expression. “Come this way, Eleanora. We’ll go together.”

He didn’t really give me much of a choice. Riddle took off, his cape dragging behind him, and I found myself looking around nervously- hoping to find one of my friends and have them give me a reason to escape- but all I found was Cater gesturing for me to follow the redhead.

Okay… welp, I guess this is my life now. Time to follow the super strict, occasionally scary dorm leader. Seriously, how did my life lead to this? I really want to know.

“Sit here.”

I blinked, watching as Riddle pulled a chair out for me and awkwardly doing as told. The third-years weren’t kidding when they called him a gentleman. Trey, seeing how awkward I was from his spot across the table next to the dorm leader, flashed me a comforting smile. Cater, who was beside him, gave me two thumbs up for encouragement. Riddle, taking his seat at the head of the table, with the vice dorm leader at his right and me at his left, picked up the tiny piece of china in front of him.

“Does everyone have their tea cups?”

I could sense the glares being sent in my direction. Actually, I could _feel_ them. Glancing around, I realized half of them were coming from this table- all from students I didn’t know nor recognize. I wondered if I had somehow gained a bad reputation during my short time here in this college.

Everyone at the many different tables picked up their pieces of china, raising them in the air and speaking in unison to verify that _yes, they did have their tea cups,_ and were ready for whatever was about to happen next. Not sure what to do except copy them, I held the fragile cup in front of me with both hands.

“A toast!” Riddle declared. Ace, Grim, and Deuce were at the opposite end of the table. “Today is nobody’s birthday, so here’s to this perfect Unbirthday Party! Cheers!”

I waited for the others to start cheering before doing the same. “Ch… Cheers!”

This was so nerve-wracking. I hated it.

Thankfully I appeared to be doing _something_ right, as Trey and Cater were nodding approvingly at me, and Riddle continued to smile. As everyone began to stand, Trey made his way around the table until he was beside me, patting my shoulder and leaning down- whispering in my ear while remaining a comfortable distance away, “You’re doing great.”

I didn’t understand.

Seeing the look on my face he laughed, placing a hand on my head and ruffling my hair. Cater disappeared to talk to Ace, and the ginger started to stand- the mont blanc in his hands. Seeing Riddle was currently drinking his tea, I decided it was safe to do the same and took a hesitant sip of my own.

This officially became the best part of today.

The tea was _heavenly._

It felt so good against my sore throat. I wasted no time in drinking the rest of it, setting the glass back down with a relieved sigh. I then blinked, noticing how Trey had a hand resting on the table- fingers practically digging into the tablecloth as watched Ace, Deuce, Grim, and Cater approach the dorm leader.

“Let this work…” I heard him murmur. His amber eyes were flickering with nervousness. “You put him in a good mood, so let this work…”

I stared, dumbfounded. Was that why he was praising me earlier? How on earth did _I_ put Riddle in a good mood? All I did was have an awkward conversation with him. “So long as there are no rules about tarts,” I spoke quietly to him, catching his attention, “we should be good.”

Trey paused for a moment, then pushed up his glasses- flashing a small smile. “Yeah… you’re right.”

Darn straight. Now let me head to the cafeteria to eat breakfast; I’m starving.

If I wasn’t so worried about upsetting Riddle or breaking my promise to be there for Ace when he apologized, I would have gotten up and left. Fiddlesticks. “Relax~!” I poked his arm, grinning, voice still a hushed whisper. Trey jolted, surprised. “Riddle won’t say no to an apology tart. You helped, remember? You’re the professional here.”

He chuckled at that. “I wouldn’t necessarily call myself that, but…”

“It’ll be fine. See, watch.” I pointed at the ginger walking up to the dorm leader, Ace awkwardly calling out to him with the tart in hand. He was speaking with a lighter tone of voice, clearly putting his acting skills to use as he plastered a smile on his face. “Ace is even being polite.”

Truly a sign of him taking my advice to heart. I told him he needed to sound sincere.

Honestly, it was sort of unnerving how genuine he was behaving. I knew he was a good actor; I just didn’t realize how good. He must have been part of a drama club or something back in middle school, because holy crap. He was stammering and everything, tone of voice light and a bit nervous, a smile plastered on his face.

“E-Excuse me, dorm leader…?” Ace called out.

Riddle turned in his seat and narrowed his eyes, seeing the ginger approach. “You… are the tart thief, correct? You haven’t been causing anymore trouble, have you?”

What? Oh, frick, okay. I think I see what he’s doing. I already spilled the beans about the apology tart, so he was baiting him- testing to see if Ace truly repented or would act out again. Clever. Also a little anxiety-inducing.

“Aha… ha… uh, n-no, actually. Um,” Ace cleared his throat, holding up the tart for Riddle to see, “I wanted to apologize for eating the tart from before. So… I baked a new one!”

“Ooh~?” A small smirk played on the redhead’s lips, the boy leaning forward and propping his chin up with his hand. “I see. Good, very good. You’re finally learning, aren’t you? Might I ask what kind of tart it is?”

I suddenly grew very scared. I tugged on Trey’s sleeve, voice quiet in my panic, “There _isn’t_ a rule against the kind of tart, right?”

“I… I don’t think so…?” His face paled.

Ace, however, just brightened at the question. His red eyes lit up and his smile became more relaxed, relief washing over him like a wave. “I’m so glad you asked!” He exclaimed, visibly happy at having Riddle’s interest piqued. “It’s a mont blanc _stuffed_ to the brim with fresh chestnuts! See? We even got some of them, uh, oh- what were they called? Marron glacés- on top!”

“A… A _mont blanc!?_ Are you serious?” Trey and I both inhaled sharply at his tone of voice, Riddle standing up looking completely horrified, his good mood completely gone. Ace was dumbfounded. “I can’t believe this!”

“Wh-Wha-?” The ginger stammered, startled.

Riddle scowled, expression hardening into a glare as he moved away from his chair, tightening his grip on the staff beside him. “Rule five hundred and sixty-two: “one must _never_ bring a mont blanc to an Unbirthday Party”. You’ve violated an imperative rule! How could you do something like this!? The Unbirthday Party is completely ruined!”

Well, frick.

Deuce, who had been standing behind Ace as moral support, choked. “R-Rule five hundred and sixty-two?”

“H-How many rules are there?” I asked, unable to believe what I was hearing. I started to stand up from my seat, legs beginning to shake as the pounding in my head got worse. “D-Do you have them all memorized!?”

“But of course.” Riddle stated, frowning. “I am the dorm leader. It only makes sense for me to memorize _all_ eight hundred and ten rules.”

E-Eight hundred and-! Oh my gods. That’s insane.

Cater cringed and stepped back, moving over to the table and leaning to try and whisper to Trey, everything going downhill quick. “Did you know!?” He asked, voice hushed and panicked. “We’re totally screwed if this keeps up!”

“I’ve only committed three hundred and fifty to memory.” Trey admitted, pressing the fingers of one hand to his temple. He was starting to look frustrated. “I can’t believe we let our guards down…! To think there’s even a rule about the kinds of tarts you can bring here…”

Frick. Frick, frick, frick. I can see Ace and Deuce looking at me in alarm, pleading for help, and not knowing what else to do I tried to speak up. “Uh, I-I’m so sorry! We had no idea; it-”

“Eleanora.” I flinched, growing silent at the stern way he said my name. Seeing that I was no longer going to speak up against him, he turned his attention back to the other freshmen. “As the dorm leader of Heartslabyul, I can not ignore this matter. Doing so would mean disrespecting the strictness the Queen of Hearts prided herself on. Dispose of this mont blanc! And you all-!”

He gestured to the other students.

“Throw these rule breakers out at once!”

No, no, no! No! This was not how it was supposed to go! My breathing was starting to get uneven, the panic and anxiety welling up and mixing in a very unhealthy concoction. I began to cough, hunching over and hacking into my sleeve as my headache grew worse, the nausea leaving me dizzy.

“Wait just a second!” Ace shouted, red eyes filled with rage. “You seriously have dumbass rules like that!?”

“Yeah!” Grim scowled, jumping over from Deuce’s shoulder onto Ace’s. “I’ll eat it if you’re just gonna throw it away! The hell’s wrong with you!?”

Seeing the way things were escalating, Trey hurriedly spoke up- a hand on my shoulder to keep me from falling over. “Dorm leader! This was my fault; please, accept my _deepest_ apologies. I was the one who said we should make the mont blanc. Eleanora told you all about the work we put into it, right? I’m so sorry. Please, don’t take it out on them.”

No way…

I looked up at Trey in alarm, vision blurred as my eyes stung. He was trying to take the blame?

Cater even cut in, nervously twiddling some of his hair between his fingers. “Y-Yeah, yeah. We didn’t think there’d be a rule like that. The freshies had absolutely no idea about it either! They’re still learning!”

“Making it isn’t the problem here.” Riddle said, glaring. “It’s the fact that you brought it here- _today!”_

This really wasn’t… how it was supposed to go. “Th-They worked so hard on it though.” I choked, finally able to speak. Tears were starting to burn my eyes. Riddle paused upon hearing my voice, turning to look at me with wide eyes. If not for Trey helping me stay upright, I would have collapsed long ago. “Th-They… They really… w-wanted to apologize…”

“That’s right!” Ace snapped, stepping forward and moving closer to the redhead. The dorm leader whirled his head around, clearly bothered yet unrelenting. Riddle stood his ground. “I’ve heard enough of these stupid rules! Are you an idiot or what?”

“An idiot… you say?” Riddle echoed, voice dangerously low. “I dare you to repeat that.”

“No, stop!” Cater freaked, holding his hand out towards Ace as if that could make him quit antagonizing the dorm leader. “That word is taboo! A-Anyway, as I was saying…”

He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself and ease up the tense atmosphere. He flashed a strained smile at the redhead, hoping it would ease him.

“These guys are just freshman! They’re still learning the ropes.” Riddle stared at him, pondering his words for a moment, his anger starting to simmer down a little. “Do you really think Trey and I, or even Ellie, would let them break such an important rule if we knew? Look at her- she’s close to tears!”

I sniffled and blinked, looking at him in confusion and then at the redhead, wondering why I was being brought into this. That was when I remembered; Riddle had threatened everyone back at the cafeteria. He thought they made me cry, and when I said it was just stress he proceeded to threaten them again- telling them that if they made me cry at all in the future he would do more than cut off their heads. Cater was using Riddle’s own code of chivalry against him.

It actually seemed to be working, too. The extra sniffle and pout I did after coming to this realization really seemed to strike a chord within the redhead, alarm flashing across his features. “Th-That wasn’t… I didn’t mean…”

“ _You_ made _her_ cry!” Ace hissed, causing Riddle to flinch. I felt awful for all of this, and sympathized with both sides, but these rules were really getting ridiculous. That didn’t mean I wanted to cause any arguments though. I was hoping to avoid anyone getting punished. “So, yeah, I’m going say it. Those rules. Are. Stupid. And you know what? You’re. An. Idiot. Were you seriously about to throw out a perfectly good tart because the Queen of Hearts decided it? Stop screwing around and grow up!”

So much for that. There was no placating him… or calming him down now. The rage was boiling back up, Riddle getting red in the face the more Ace spoke. It only got worse when Deuce joined in as well.

“I agree.” The blue-haired teen said, folding his arms over his chest with a frown. “I believe rules are meant to be followed, but this…? This is too arbitrary to be a proper rule!”

Riddle took a deep breath, attempting to calm himself. “You’ve got quite the nerve talking back to me… just- listen here and listen well, okay? Even the breaking of seemingly insignificant rules can lead to huge problems. Understand? This is for your own benefit.”

“Ha! My own benefit?” Ace snarked. “The other residents are afraid of getting their magic sealed, so they don’t speak up- but I’m sure they feel the same! I heard it earlier at the cafeteria; they can’t even eat what food they want because of these dumb rules! Isn’t that right, everyone!?” He raised his voice, looking at the audience who was watching, the students all shifting and looking highly uncomfortable.

“Th-That’s…” One began, voice timid and meek.

Another waved their hands frantically, taking a step back. “W-We don’t… um…”

“Hmph!” Riddle turned his sharp gaze towards them, narrowing his eyes. “Is that so?”

The students jumped. The first one stammered, “N-No! Not at all, dorm leader!”

“Everything is based on your judgment!” The second one blurted out.

Grim looked at them in disbelief. “Those guys…” 

“Wish washy jerks…” Ace clicked his tongue.

Riddle turned his attention back to the ginger and his blue-haired classmate, his hands holding the staff up horizontally in front of his chest, the dorm leader doing his best not to lose his temper. His tone was level, if not occasionally shaking with anger, as he spoke. “In the year that I’ve been dorm leader, there hasn’t been a single student who has gotten held back or expelled from Heartslabyul! Only _Heartslabyul_ can say that!”

His fingers tightened around the staff, leather gloves almost creaking against the metal.

“In this dorm, I am both the smartest and the strongest! I have the highest marks out of anyone here!” Riddle actually started to raise his voice, releasing the staff with one hand and waving it at the freshmen. “That makes me the most correct! All you have to do is follow my rules without rebelling.”

“That’s…” Deuce faltered.

Riddle inhaled shakily. “I’m not cutting off your heads because I want to. You’re the ones who keep breaking the rules... leaving me with no choice.” There was a new vulnerability in his tone, something raw and aching, and as I focused on that observation the throbbing in my skull began to worsen. It almost sounded like Riddle was trying to convince himself, rather than us, that he was doing the right thing. “If I don’t do it, you won’t learn! You won’t get better. It’s... for your own benefit.”

Trey lowered his head at that, looking away and pulling the hat down over his eyes.

“If you won’t obey me…” Riddle said, slowly raising the staff up to point at them directly, expression hardening. “...then it’s off with all of your heads!”

“This is the part where you say “yes, dorm leader”!” Cater whispered fiercely at the boys. “Come on! Say it!”

Deuce and Ace remained silent. Deuce then folded his arms over his chest, shaking his head. “I can’t do that.”

Frick, frick- god freaking; okay. You know what? I pulled away from the third-year who had been helping me stand, slowly making my way over to the side of the table my friends were at. Every nerve in my body was screaming at me, telling me not to do this, saying I should avoid any conflict. But…

I can’t.

Riddle, Cater, and Trey stared with wide eyes as I reached up and pinched the hems of Ace and Deuce’s uniforms, Grim leaping down to stand on my shoulder- a paw on top of my head.

This was wrong. Everything was… wrong.

Riddle was forcing himself to do this; to follow these ridiculous rules and enforce them, even at the expense of his own happiness. Something was hurting him inside, driving him into this corner, and… while I wasn’t exactly certain what it was or what I could do to even help… this felt like a start. If this kept up, all the people close to him were going to leave. I don’t want to see that.

I don’t want… to see that smile… disappear.

“I get… why you’re doing it.” I admitted, the words hard to get out, my brown gaze rising to meet stunned storm grey. “But ruling by fear is… wrong. The uniforms, the roses- those rules are understandable. But this?”

The redhead was silent.

Ace narrowed his eyes, lifting his chin up. “Anyone who refuses a heartfelt apology tart is an _idiot!_ And you… I reject you, you selfish tyrant!”

Riddle’s voice was quiet when he finally spoke. “What did you just say…?”

Grim stood up straight, ears drawing back as he bared his fangs at the redhead, his claws digging in to my shoulder. “We’re saying you’re a pompous, hotheaded tyrant that wastes food for his own selfish whims!”

I choked. “Grim-!”

Deuce looked at the cat monster in alarm. “Th-That was _not_ what we said!”

 _“OFF WITH YOUR HEADS~!”_ Riddle screeched at us, waving his staff violently in front of him as a burst of magic let loose.

I panicked- not really knowing what to expect and fully convinced that my head would actually be removed from my shoulders because of my lack of magic- and let out a terrified scream, ducking down and covering my head with my arms. My heart almost seemed to stop in my fear, body bracing for sharp, excruciating pain. From inside I could feel the needle-like aches start up again, stabbing me in anger at the action, lungs not at all pleased with what I was doing. But I didn't care.

I was scared.

I found myself shaking, breath coming out in stuttered bursts, confusion settling in when no pain occurred. Slowly lowering my hands, my hearing started to work again as two agonized screams reached my ears. When I looked up I saw Deuce and Grim with familiar collars around their necks, sealing their magic. But I… I was unharmed?

There wasn’t so much as a dent on my neck. “I... “ My hands were trembling badly, heart pounding so hard it hurt. “I’m not… dead?”

Ace flashed me a weird look, raising an eyebrow at my choice of words. “Obviously.”

Holy frick.

“It’s this damn collar again,” Grim gasped, “urk… hard to… breathe…!”

Deuce tried to pry it open with his hands, cursing under his breath. “Damn it…! It won’t… come off!”

“Trey, Cater!” Riddle shouted, throwing his arm out to the side, the tip of his staff nearly touching the ground. “Throw them outside!”

The two third-years looked at each other, then at us, and proceeded to lower their heads. So quiet, their voices barely audible, they murmured, “Yes, dorm leader…” in unison. Honestly, I think that was the most painful thing about this entire situation. Riddle was doing what he thought was best, yet was missing the bigger picture in doing so.

He was hurting the people who cared about him.

Seeing the two men approach, I quickly held my hands up, backing away. The boys beside me didn’t.

“What’re you doing!?” Deuce demanded, shocked by their behavior.

“Sorry~!” Cater apologized, speaking in a sing-song voice as if it would lighten the mood. “Really, really sorry, but we don’t go against the dorm leader.”

Trey refused to look at us. “I’m sorry…”

“Ooooh, is that so!?” Ace exclaimed, shoving the mont blanc into my arms. I yelped, barely catching the tart before it fell, and watched as he stepped forward- slamming a fist into his palm. “Come at me then! Bring it on!”

Trey hesitated. “...Please, don’t make this difficult...”

“You really expect me to just let you toss us out!?” Ace barked. Deuce was getting ready to fight as well, and I looked back-and-forth at the boys frantically. I was not prepared to deal with a freaking battle so early in the morning. I wasn’t prepared to deal with a battle at all. “No way!”

Cater seemed reluctant, yet not completely against using magic to force us out judging by the way he was pulling out his magical pen. But Trey…? He really seemed torn about this. He clearly cared a lot for Riddle, and going against him was something he just couldn’t do. Yet to attack us? I don’t think he wanted to do that either.

“Deuce!” Ace called. “I got Cater! You get Trey!”

“I really hope I don’t get in trouble for this…” Deuce muttered, sea green eyes hardening into a glare. “Sorry about this, you guys!”

Grim leapt off my head, landing on the grassy ground and hissing- his fur standing on end. “I’ll bite off their kneecaps!”

No! No, no, no-!

This is bad, really bad! What do I do? I have to do something! I can’t just stand here and let it escalate any further. Frick! Think, think; come on, girl, everyone is going to get into trouble and wind up hurt if we don’t make them back down!

“Stop!” I rushed forward, holding the tart up above my head, getting in the way of them about to battle. “J-Just stop it!” I broke out into several coughs, wounded throat not liking the way I had been abusing it today with all the chatter. I looked at both sides of the battlefield, horrified and beyond scared of what was occurring. “N-No fighting! This… This isn’t gonna get us anywhere!”

“Ellie…” Cater began, smile strained. “Please move. I don’t want to accidentally hit you with my magic.”

“No!” I shook my head fervently, choking up as the tears continued to sting my eyes. “I won’t! Y-You’re all acting like little kids! I’m the… I’m the supervisor, right? I-I refuse to… to _supervise_ this. We’ll go, so just… stop!” I looked back at Ace, Deuce, and Grim, lips curling back as the pain in my chest became near unbearable. The boys stared, something unreadable in their gazes. “Just… stop… okay? Please?”

Ace grit his teeth, clearly wanting to punch something, before he huffed and begrudgingly lowered his fist. “Whatever.”

A heavy sigh left Deuce’s lips. He straightened his back, nudging Grim with his foot. “Fine. Just… Just this once, Eleanora.”

“I wanna scratch that tyrant’s face…” Grim muttered, not liking how they weren’t going to battle anymore. “This is stupid!”

Shaking in both fear and relief, I lowered the mont blanc and held in front of me. I glanced at Cater and Trey, and watched as they lowered their magical wands. “Thank you…” I breathed.

Everyone had calmed down.

Or at least they had… until a large shard of ice shot the mont blanc out of my grasp, causing it to fly through the air and splatter all over the ground.

I stared, eyes wide, unable to believe what I was seeing. Completely stunned, I looked down at my empty hands and then at the pile of mush that had once been something so wonderful. We all turned to see a student standing several feet away- blond hair, green eyes, a grey vest. A clover on his face.

His magical pen… pointed right at me.

Ace and Deuce charged, losing all sense of control, Grim right behind them as they ran at the student- shouting and screaming curses and insults, throwing fists as other students made magic go flying through the air.

“Th… The mont blanc…” I stammered, brain still processing. A pair of hands touched my shoulders and I choked, a painful sob starting to form as I looked up at a solemn Trey. My hands were still frozen in the pose they had been in when I was still holding the pastry. “They just… you guys w-worked so hard… a-and they just… th-they just…!”

“I’m sorry.” He whispered, watching as another piece of my sanity disappeared, everything I thought I had known and understood falling apart right before me. He wrapped his arms around me, my legs giving out as I coughed and wheezed and shut down, the third-year holding me to his chest as chaos exploded around us. “I’m so sorry, Eleanora.”

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

Not at all.

He kept me out of the line of fire, away from the battling students, and away from the dorm leader who was shouting in the background- demanding something be done about the troublesome students who were fighting. Cater glanced at us and then rushed in the midst of battle, surrounded by multiple versions of himself, his clones pulling the boys away from the other students. Most notably, they had been heavily focused on attacking the student who had destroyed the mont blanc, and it took everything the clones had to succeed in separating them from the student.

In the end the strawberry blonds dragged Ace, Deuce, and Grim out of the tea party and into the hedge maze, and following behind at a slow pace was Trey; the man quietly helping me walk as what little tears I had left fell down my cheeks, oxygen barely making it into my lungs as I coughed and wheezed, expression contorted with pain yet somehow empty all the same.

Everything just… went all wrong.

All that hard work, all that effort, all that convincing… it was for nothing.

I nearly got myself killed by an angry half-asleep lion, and this was the outcome? I was unable to speak as we found ourselves standing in front of the Heartslabyul dorm, the boys grumbling to themselves and the third-years greatly conflicted about what they had to do.

“Really sorry about that,” Cater apologized again, “but we really can’t go against him. Ah- Ellie, are you okay?”

No. I’m… I’m angry. I’m filled to the brim with rage and I can’t… express it. I don’t have the strength or the energy.

I feel so numb and spiteful and hurt, and… I can’t do anything about it except stand here and cry in silence. My lungs and throat burned so much; it felt like I was being stabbed and suffocated simultaneously. I wanted to find that blond student, pin him down, and ram my fist into his face like Deuce did. Knee him in the stomach like Ace had.

And most of all, I wanted to screech and thrash wildly like Grim, throwing hands with whoever made Riddle this way. Whoever taught him that ridiculous rules like these needed to be followed.

“...I’m fine.” I finally said, voice hoarse, eyebrows furrowing as I cringed and coughed again. “S-Sorry.”

Trey frowned deeply, squeezing my shoulder lightly. “You’re fine. We’ll work on pacifying Riddle while you recover, so you guys can come back later and apologize. After what happened, I don’t think even Deuce would be welcome… so I’m afraid the boys will have to stay with you a bit longer.”

That’s… also fine. I don’t mind that. I actually enjoyed their company. It’s the confrontation that annoyed me. This… pointless anger boiling inside of me. I wasn’t even sure where half of this anger was coming from- who it was directed towards. For some reason none of it was directed at Riddle himself; it was at whoever I convinced myself raised him this way. His parents, maybe? Did he come from a strict family?

For some reason… that felt oddly correct to me. Like it just _had_ to be true.

“Screw that!” Ace snapped. “I am _never_ apologizing! Deuce, Grim; let’s go! El, get over here!”

The ginger shot a hand out and latched onto my arm, forcibly pulling me away from Trey. The third-year let out a small sound of surprise and I flinched, the fingers around my wrist holding a bit too tight to be comfortable. Ace was furious.

Cater waved awkwardly from the doorway, watching as Ace stormed away with the rest of us behind him. “See you guys later~!”

“I’m seriously pissed off!” The ginger declared as we headed towards the mirror, walking past some rose trees and bushes as we did so. “Screw that tiny red tyrant! Who does he think he is; the Queen of Hearts!? Hell no!”

Deuce shook his head and groaned, bringing a hand up to his head and brushing his bangs back. “Ahhh… I disobeyed the dorm leader and got kicked out… I’m even further from being an honors student!” Grim winced from his spot on the blue-haired teen’s shoulder.

“This collar is so heavy… it hurts…”

Speaking of hurt- Ace finally released my wrist, apparently having deemed us a safe enough distance from the others to do so. I didn’t wholly understand why he got so defensive all of a sudden and felt the need to pull me from Trey when the third-year had only been helping me, but I guess it had part to do with him being so mad at Riddle. Trey was the vice dorm leader, after all, and it wasn’t like he had been kicked out alongside the rest of us.

Without warning, an unfamiliar voice spoke up from above. “You guys look so stylish with your _meow-_ tching collars~!” In front of us, with big pink cat ears and golden eyes, was a floating head.

Ace, Deuce, and I jumped. Grim, however, straight-up _screamed._

“Oops!” The stranger said, the lower half of his body suddenly appearing. His white button-up was worn loosely over his form, a striped pink-and-purple shirt showing from underneath. He looked… vaguely familiar. The man snickered. “I _fur_ -got to bring out the rest of me, nyaha!”

“Wh-Whoa…” Deuce blinked and did a double-take. “You’re actually a person? Who _are_ you?”

The man placed a hand on his hip. “I’m Alchemi Alchemavich Pinka!” He walked around us, tail swishing behind him, a wide grin spread across his face. His golden eyes flickered with amusement. “I’m a great enigma with magic, who’s both a person and a cat!”

“Achemi alclehvi… alchem…” Ace bit his tongue and flinched. “How do you pronounce that again?”

The man laughed, momentarily disappearing from view before reappearing by my side- causing me to jump and Deuce to hurriedly move forward, throwing an arm out to act as a barrier between us. “Everyone just calls me Chen’ya~! And at the very least…” He held his fists up, showing off his ring. My eyes locked onto it immediately now that I had a better view, and the pounding in my head grew worse. “I’m on a different level than those guys in there.”

That ring… it was of a madly grinning cat. A… cheshire cat?

And those earrings… they were of little arrows- pointing in different directions as if to confuse you on which way you were meant to go. I felt so nauseous and sick; I raised a hand up to my chest, fingers digging into the red vest, feeling my heart pound louder. I couldn’t see an armband or colored vest on him. “Wh… What d-dorm… are you from…?”

“Oho~ you wanna guess?” He leaned over, folding his arms over his chest. Deuce pushed me further behind him. Chen’ya blinked, noticing something. “Nyaha~ what’s this? You’re a girl, aren’t _mew?_ What’cha doin’ in an all boys school?”

“Being bitter and annoyed.” I forced out, trying to ignore the pain in my throat. “The mirror… screwed up.”

Chen’ya hummed at that. Grim then sat up, ears moving forward in his excitement. “I know what dorm you’re from! You got the cat ears, so… you have to be from the banana dorm!”

“Boo-boo!” The man stuck his tongue, grin broadening even more as he stood and shook his head. “Nope! I’m a cat, not a fruit.”

Deuce almost looked disappointed in Grim. “There are students in others dorms with different-looking ears, too, you know.”

Right. Lilia had pointed ones. They were pretty cute, actually, but then again so was he. I made a face, tilting my head to the side. The cat ears twitching atop Chen’ya’s head were actually fairly distracting. Despite how much moving hurt me, I had the extreme urge to reach over and fiddle with those fuzzy ears. “This place… is so weird…”

“Really?” Chen’ya asked, turning to me in surprise. His grin never faded. “This is actually pretty normal. Where are _mew_ from where it’s not?”

Ace stepped forward then, grouchy expression becoming even grouchier. “None of your business; now get outta the way! I’m in a bad mood thanks to that absurd tyrant, and I don’t wanna deal with you.”

“Oooh~ Riddle? A tyrant? Well, it’s not incorrect,” Chen’ya mused, giggling, “but it’s not a _purr-_ fect observation either. He’s been a rather serious one since he was little.”

Huh? That was random. Did he know him?

“Do you know something?” Deuce asked, eyes narrowing. “Who are you exactly?”

“Nyaha~ I told you who I was! As for if I know something… hmm~ curious and curiouser.”

Chen’ya’s lips curled upwards, impossible grin widening even further, the man leaning back and disappearing again. We all looked around for him, alarmed, only to raise out heads up- hearing him humming from a branch on a nearby tree. He was laying on his stomach, elbows propped up with his palms pressed to his cheeks.

“If you think I know something, then surely I must! But If you think I _don’t_ know something… well, I simply must not know then, right?”

“Which is it!?” Grim demanded tail swishing angrily behind him.

Chen’ya raised his eyebrows, giggling. “What’s this~? Do you all want to know about Riddle?”

I couldn’t exactly place why, but this conversation felt eerily familiar. The frustration that came with his roundabout way of speaking doubly so. “Th… That’s not… an answer!”

“Stop dancing around the question!” Ace growled, stepping forward. “You know we do! What kind of upbringing turns someone into that kind of tyrant!? Tell us!”

The cat-like stranger laughed at our reactions. Chen’ya gestured with his thumb back towards the direction of the tea party. “Fufu~ you should ask your glasses _fur-_ end all about it! I’m sure you’ll learn something interesting…”

“Glasses…?” Deuce was momentarily confused before realization dawned on him. “Do you mean Trey?”

Chen’ya nodded. “He’s known Riddle since he was a wee little thing. If you want to know more about him, he’s the one you gotta talk to right _meow._ ”

“They were childhood friends?” The blue-haired teen blinked. “It didn’t seem that way at all.”

“Really?” I looked at him in surprised, befuddled by that. I thought it was fairly obvious the two knew each other. I wasn’t exactly sure how long or well they did, but it was clear they cared for one another. Trey was always so quick to defend him and speak good of him, even when forced to acknowledge his faults.

“If _mew_ think so, then surely they are! So there’s nothing more for me to talk about. See _mew!”_

Everyone watched in alarm as Chen’ya’s lower body started to fade, leaving him as a floating head. Deuce started to move forward, shouting in protest and holding a hand out as if to get him to reappear- but that was when I heard it. The song Chen’ya began to hum as the rest of him faded away.

_All mimsy~ were the borogoves! And the mome raths outgrabe~!_

I stood there frozen, staring with wide eyes as everything- including his smile- disappeared from view. I felt incredibly lightheaded, as though I were about to pass out, and when my knees startled to buckle I grabbed onto the back of Deuce’s jacket, determined to stop myself from falling. He tried to turn his head to glance down at me, to make sure I was okay, but the collar sort of got in the way.

He grimaced, bringing a hand up to the item wrapped around his throat. “If we keep these on, we won’t be able to take part in class…”

“That guy had a really weird cat-titude.” Grim commented, staring in the direction Chen’ya had vanished. He then blinked, startled by the pun he let slip. “Ack! Now I’m talking like him!”

I almost snorted. Unfortunately, I was way too dizzy to do so. I normally enjoyed bad jokes and puns, but right now I really needed something to eat or this nausea was going to be the end of me. This was the worst possible start to a school morning. Deuce turned around, letting me hold onto his arm for balance, his sea green eyes flickering with worry.

“We should go see what Trey has to say, and then…” He looked at Ace, not at all perturbed by the glare being sent in his direction. Red eyes narrowed irritably. “You know…”

“Don’t even say it. I am _not_ apologizing to that tyrant! Not after what he did!”

“So stubborn…” I sighed, blinking a couple of times as I waited for the world to stop spinning. I looked up at the boys, their attention turning to me when they heard me start to speak. “Why don’t… we just… ambush Trey later? He… grabbed a recipe book from the library, right? He’ll need to… return it.”

…

It seemed like a fairly decent plan. We all returned to Ramshackle to grab our school uniforms, changed into those, and then went back to the main school building to eat breakfast. Deuce wound up having to carry me halfway there, because my body could _not_ make it back down the hill on its own. I almost blacked out trying.

I only started to feel a little better once I got some food in me, some soothing green tea to help with my throat. I was seriously mad I couldn’t eat cereal like I usually did, instead settling for something softer like scrambled eggs. I wanted to rage. Grim actually looked a little unsettled when he saw me stabbing the pieces of egg with the fork, making a comment on how it looked like I was trying to impale them.

“Please be nice to the eggs…” Deuce pleaded quietly.

That reminded me of the delinquent incident. I sighed and did as told, finishing breakfast with pained eyes and a pout. After everything that’s already happened, I doubted I would make it through the school day. I wasn’t sure if what I needed to survive was a breathing treatment or for someone to cut me open and remove the thorns growing inside me.

Freaking Crowley and that dumb magic mirror…

I pushed my tray forward, making room so I could fold my arms on the table and lean over, burying my face in them. I was still boiling with rage, but there was also… confusion. A need to understand what was going on. Riddle, the roses, the tyranny, Chen’ya, the song that was being hummed… it all was so familiar to me.

Was it the dreams?

Gods, thinking about it all made me feel even more sick. I need to stop, but I can’t. My desire to know, to learn, to understand everything happening around me in this mad world was too strong. I can’t be passive or submissive and just go with the flow; I have to understand. I need to. Yet what was the point? I was already dying, wasn’t I? Frick, I’m _already_ getting dragged into craziness again due to these people I’ve just met.

It’s been one insane thing after another, left and right. I doubted I would even make it to twenty years old at this rate. I groaned, eyes squeezing tightly shut when I felt the stinging sensation of tears start to form. “I want to go home…”

Ace raised a straw to his lips and took a long sip of his orange juice, staring. “Why don’t you go ahead and wait in the library without us?” He suggested. “We’ll tell the teachers you aren’t feeling well. We’ll catch up with you.”

Oh, bless his soul. I really didn’t want to skip class, but there was no way I could deal with Divus right now. My heart was under enough stress as is and if things got any worse I was going to wind up with another fever. I sat up halfway, looking up the ginger with teary eyes, bottom lip trembling slightly.

“Y… You’d do that?” Last time he had been so intent I go to classes with them.

Ace sighed. “Well, we can’t let you die on us, can we?”

I faltered. He had no idea. I mean, that meant I was doing a fairly good job of hiding it- or maybe my being so naturally sickly just made it harder to detect, but… he had no idea I spit up blood this morning. No one did.

Before I knew what I was doing I had a hand gripping his uniform sleeve, the ginger’s red eyes widening in surprise when I leaned forward and rested my forehead against the side of his shoulder, my teeth grinding tight together as I hid my expression from him and the others. My throat ached as I strangled down a sob, lips curling back as the fear washed over me full force.

“El…?”

“I… I’m sorry.” My grip tightened momentarily before I pulled away, inhaling sharply and flashing him as bright a smile as I could manage. “Thank you. I-I’ll see you guys at lunch then?”

Deuce nodded. “Yeah.” He looked deeply concerned. “Are you sure you shouldn’t go to the infirmary? If you aren’t feeling well…”

I waved him off. “I-It’s fine. I’m… fine. I just… need to rest.”

Yes. Everything was fine. Everything was going to _be_ fine. I shakily stood, picking up my empty tray.

“I… I’ll see you guys later. Keep an eye on Grim.”

“Oi!” The cat monster was greatly offended by this. “What’s that supposed to mean!? I’m a genius, y’know! I don’t need henchmen like them to keep an eye on me!”

I could hear Ace and Deuce argue with him, demanding who was a henchman and who wasn’t as I walked away. It almost made me my lips twitch upwards in a genuine smile. They really were such goofs, but… I guess I adored them anyway. What a way to become friends.

Clinging to the wall and avoiding all the curious and confused eyes from unfamiliar students when they saw me walk by, I moved at a sluggish pace. I guess some still weren’t aware of there being a female student in their all boys school. On the other hand, there were a few that did recognize me and they shot glares in my direction.

Yeah, I definitely built up a bad reputation in the few days I’ve been here.

Putting my tray away and exiting the school building, I stood at the bottom of the staircase with my hands gripping the railing tightly. Which direction was the library in again? Ah, this way. I remember now.

I passed by a couple of students who were just now making their way into the building, and some who were leaving because they forgot something in their dorm. My steps were clumsy and awkward, and I stumbled sideways more than once. I was just about to hit the last step when-

“YOUNG MASTER~!”

I cringed at the shout. I barely turned my head in time to watch as someone dashedby, the tall stranger rushing up the steps to the school building as fast he could possibly manage.

“YOUNG MASTER, WHERE DID YOU GOOOO~!?”

Holy frick.

My eyebrows raised and I stared for a few good seconds, before shaking my head and continuing on my way. To think people back home thought I was louder than should be; this dude was on a whole other level. Anyway, the library was… ah-yes, over here. Found it. I hesitated before opening the doors, pondering if it really was alright for me to skip class. Hopefully the boys were convincing enough and the teachers wouldn’t get upset.

Divus especially…

Nope, no; I am not thinking about him. I refuse. I inhaled deeply, eyes closing as I shut the door behind me quietly. I needed to focus. Trey had to be planning to deliver the recipe book sometime soon, right? That meant I needed to find a good place to wait for him. I made my over to a nearby table- out of the view of the librarian yet still close enough for me to watch the doors.

And watch I did… before boredom took over and I started to doze off. After about an hour of doing absolutely nothing except sitting and breathing, I began to relax and grow less shaky; mind more of less devoid of all thoughts as I stared blankly at the large pair of doors. I yawned loudly. Sleep was so tempting…

Maybe… it would be alright if I rummaged through some books? I can keep an eye out just in case, but… it was probably going to be a while before the third-year shows up. Yeah…

Yeah, I’ll do that. I got up, heading over to some book aisles and wondering what I should be looking for. The last time I searched for teleportation devices or spells, and theories on other worlds and dimensions, all of which got me nowhere. So perhaps this time I can look up ancient curses or spells involving flowers? Hmm…

Gods, was there anything useful in this library? It was freaking huge, so there should be something! Am I just looking in the wrong place?

I narrowed my eyes and looked up at the flight of stairs. They were my worst enemy, wearing me out faster than anything else, but there had to be something up there. Just one book. One teensy little book with maybe a hint about how I got here or how to break this curse.

_Please. Please, let there be at least one._

I was starting to grow desperate. I forced my tired legs up those steps and wandered into the aisles, coughing at the dust and the smell of musty parchment and ink. It almost felt like I walked into an old attic that hadn’t been touched in years. I nearly forgot about Trey, about how I needed to keep a look out in case he showed up, but the doors were loud and you could hear a bell ring every time you entered. I convinced myself it would be fine.

I was just… anxious. Anxious and scared, and worried that there wouldn’t be any books or scrolls that could tell me what was wrong with me. What could be done to fix it.

“J-Just one…” I muttered, voice hoarse and quiet, bottom lip trembling as I ran my fingers gingerly over the backs of several book spines- reading their titles. “Please, just one…”

One book. I beg of you.

World, after everything you’ve put me through in these three days… let me have this one thing.

“Please…” I dragged myself into another aisle, nearly growing dizzy at the sudden light and temperature change, the sun from the windows not at all able to reach this part of the library. “Let there be one…”

Oh my gods. I halted in my tracks, eyes growing wide as I found it.

“Th-There is…? Haha, there is!” Ow, ow, that hurts. I stood on my toes and reached an arm up, fingers struggling to touch even the spine of it. “C-Come on…”

Who on earth made these shelves so tall? It was ridiculous! I coughed and hunched over, wheezing with a hand on my chest as I struggled and failed to reach the book. This world is mocking me now, isn’t it? Dangling something so close yet so far out of my reach, knowing it was what I wanted. What I needed.

I tried once more in vain to grab it, before pulling away in defeat- knowing I was only exhausting myself further. “S… Stool? Is there… a stool…” No. Even worse. I looked around in a panic, the fear starting to rise up as I worried about if I would ever be able to read that book and if I would have to risk climbing the shelves to do so.

I brought a hand to my head, tangling my fingers in my hair, brushing my bangs back as I looked around in despair and exasperation. I know for a fact that I wasn’t the only short person in this school, so why…?

Oh.

Well, hello there. I had thought I was the only student in the library this early.

The stranger sat in the darker part of the room- near the aisle I was in- and almost blended in with the shadows themselves. He was lounging comfortably on a sofa, one long leg crossed over another, a book held delicately in his gloved hands. I stared blankly for a moment, wondering if I was hallucinating, and stepped closer- blinking and rubbing at my eyes when the person didn’t vanish.

He almost didn’t look real. No- that was incorrect. He was far too beautiful to _be_ real.

The man paused in turning a page when he sensed my approach, intense eyes turning to look down at me as I gazed at him. I was standing at my full height while he was merely sitting, and yet he still seemed to tower over my small form. He dressed in the regular black school uniform, neon green vest signifying his stature as Diasomnia student.

His hair- long and dark as night itself- fell elegantly over his shoulders, framing his face near perfectly and bringing out the lovely porcelain of his pale skin. His slit pupils were only accented by his breathtaking chartreuse irises, several shades of green and yellow blending together and creating an eye color that was near hypnotizing as it seemed to glow in this darkness.

That wasn’t even mentioning the black make-up he was wearing. I hadn’t thought it possible, but this man was single-handedly the most beautiful and enchanting person I have ever seen. His stare seemed to lock me in me place, my lungs momentarily forgetting how to breathe.

“Y… You’re…”

He closed his book, turning to face me completely. Not a hint of emotion showed on his face. It was as if he were used to this- a complete stranger stopping before him in utter awe of his beauty. I was practically choking on my voice as I fumbled to speak, a flush rising to my face and painting my cheeks red for reasons I could not fathom.

“You’re... really tall...”

He said nothing, the smallest of smirks playing on his charcoal-colored lips. An eyebrow raised, and I swear to god my heart forgot how to beat for a second. “Is that all you wished to say to me, child of man?”

All the shakiness that had dissipated before came back in full force upon hearing his voice. It was smooth like velvet, yet as deep as the darkest melted chocolate. I could practically _feel_ it in my bones, words even harder to speak as I found myself unbelievably, undoubtedly flustered by this intimidating man. Not even a certain fur-coat wearing teacher had managed to prompt this sort of reaction out of me.

I watched as the stranger stood, suddenly coming to attention to the fact that he had a pair of very green and very real horns curling back atop his head. He was even taller than I imagined, leaving me struggling to just barely reach his shoulders, and as he approached I became more aware of this- more aware of how he could probably _end me_ with just a snap of his fingers if he so wanted. He gave off this aura, this sense of sheer _power_ and _danger_ , and yet instead of running I stood there.

I stood there and craned my neck up to look at him as he approached, lips growing dry as my heart pounded in my chest. He stopped directly in front of me, seeming to take amusement in something.

He raised a hand up to his chin, arm crossed over his broad chest. “Merely remarking on my height- that’s rather bold of you, considering who I am. Should I take that as insult?”

“I… Insult?” My voice cracked. I tried to shake away the red on my face, swallowing down the lump in my throat. “N-No, no-I was just, uh, stating a fact? You are… like…”

I coughed into my shoulder.

“Super freaking tall. Which is, in actuality, a good thing! A-At least, I think so.” Okay, calm down. Do not panic. Deep breaths. I’m more flustered than I am scared right now, and honestly I don’t know how to feel about that. My brain was trying to go into places better left untread. “I personally wish I was a bit taller, but I’m not… so… like… that’s a thing. Tall people are great.”

Especially people who stood at a solid six foot three, with pointed ears and horns, and very evident muscles beneath his uniform. His horns only made him appear taller, giving off the momentary impression that he was six foot six. _Damn it._ Brain, stop it! I am a good, innocent human. Stop thinking these things! You were doing so well earlier! Ugh. At least he didn’t seem to be aware as to why I was so red. I think he thought I was simply afraid of him.

Either way, my comment had this man’s attention now. Definitely shaking from head-to-toe, though not from fear and more from anxiety and sheer nervousness, I fiddled with the scars on my hands and ruffled my hair, lips moving and speaking words before I could stop them, throat aching and causing me to flinch with certain syllables.

“I-I just- so, this is weird, and I’m sorry, but… as I mentioned- you _are_ tall. Super tall. And I’m… super not. I-I tried to look for some stools to climb on, but there aren’t any… and… well…”

I coughed and took a deep breath, tugging at my sleeves and twisting them, looking up at him with the most hopeful smile I could manage.

“Help? Please? I-I’ll leave you alone after if you want, not many people like random strangers walking up and asking for help, b-but I really need this book and-”

I cut myself off, staring in alarm when he started to laugh.

“You dare ask _me_ for assistance in reaching a book?” He looked down at me, charcoal-colored lips curled in an almost twisted sort of smile. “You really are a bold one, aren’t you? What would you do if I were to refuse? Would you return to your dorm with your head held low?”

“...A-Actually, I would probably climb the shelves first.”

He blinked.

I awkwardly looked away and moved to scratch the back of my neck out of habit- before hissing in pain and lowering my hand away, wrapping my fingers gingerly around my throat. Frick. This was going to be hard to admit. “I-I don’t… like… I don’t… like to ask for help. I-It’s… my worst trait, I think. But I didn’t… want to cause a ruckus, and then I saw you and thought… oh, hey- mysterious stranger with super long legs! Maybe he can grab it for me.”

“Mysterious… stranger?” That seemed to stick with him. The man paused. “What made you think I would agree to grab the book for you?”

Oh yeah. Here we go. It’s time for me to pull the cute card my father was so proud of using whenever he dragged me with him to the store to buy deli food. I never actually said anything; I merely stood there and went through the messages on his phone for him, but apparently whenever I was with him the person working there would always put more chicken in the bucket than when I wasn’t. I didn’t agree with it because I didn’t feel like my appearance did all that much, but it made him happy to get the extra food so I went along with it.

I think that was what annoyed me so much with Cater. He kept praising me for my appearance when I didn’t want any attention for it. It made me uncomfortable.

This time though? I was gonna have to go full on adorable.

I clapped my hands together and held them close to the side of my face, fluttering my eyelashes a couple of times as I smiled at him- being mostly sarcastic with a hint of actual hopefulness.

“Becaaauuuse~ you’re a super nice guy who likes to help people? Specifically, short girls with brown hair? Who can’t reach the top shelves? And who has been nearly killed multiple times during the three days she’s been at this school?”

I had to look closely to actually see it, but- judging by his wide eyes and shoulders that were shaking with laughter- I think I just made this man’s day.

“Do you not know fear, human?” He asked, covering the lower half of his face with his hand as he attempted to muffle his laughter. “Do you truly not have any idea of who I am?”

“Nope.” I grinned. I was starting to calm down a little, seeing that I was not in any immediate danger. He was also beginning to seem like a rather chill dude, considering he found me more entertaining than anything. I laced my hands behind my back, leaning to the side and looking up at him curiously. “Why? Should I? Oh! Are you a dorm leader? I met someone from Diasomnia before; he was super nice! He was also a fae. Are you a fae, too?”

“You not knowing who I am…” His lips fell into a softer smile. “That is exceedingly rare. And yes, your assumption is correct. I suppose I shall help you reach that book after all- come, show me where it is at, little human.”

Wait, seriously? A weight seemed to be lifted from my shoulders, my expression brightening considerably as I found myself engaging in conversation with someone friendly and new.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WE FINALLY DID IT YOU GUYS WE FINALLY GOT TO MALLEUS~!!!!! Holy crap. I almost posted this chapter right after the gang met Chen'ya, but I promised Malleus and I wanted to write Malleus, SO MALLLLLEEEEUSSSSSS!!!!!! 
> 
> El ain't scared. Frick no. She's just super flustered by him. XD Longest chapter yet I think. 
> 
> Hopefully Riddle and Trey came out in character in this chapter. It got a bit complicated during some parts. Heck, I hope Malleus came out in character. I draw him so much, but I still get nervous, haha. But this chapter ended with our boi, which means the next one begins with him! Wooo! What do you guys think? How do you feel their meeting went? It's different from the actual first meeting in the game, but... for things to pan how I'm planning they need way more interaction than Yuu gets with Mal in-game. 
> 
> ALSO CHEN'YA! Added that Cheshire Cat dream for a reason, lol. 
> 
> Welp, anyway. Thank you for all the support! I can't believe we're at 260 kudos. O.o Holy moly. You guys are amazing. I also hope you guys have a nice/day night, wherever you are, and are staying safe! And if you're able, maybe let me know what you guys think of the chapter in the comments? <3 Please and thank you. 
> 
> We're like two or three chapters away from Overblot. Oof. OH! And if anyone is interested, I made a short animatic for Riddle's overblot. I posted it on my tumblr, twitter, and youtube. (Literally the only video I have on youtube. Oof. I killed my hand making that and I still forgot Riddle's little crown in three frames T_T so mad at myself for that) I go by the same name on those sites that I go by here, so it shouldn't be hard to find. Trey with Doodle Suit is the thumbnail) 
> 
> I have it titled "Twst animatic: Riddle Overblot (Desperate Measures)"
> 
> Mild spoilers for the overblot chapter though.
> 
> EDIT: Sooo twst guidebook is out, and it's revealed Malleus is (sadly) 202 cm WITH the horns. His real height is around 193 cm, leaving him just barely taller than Jack, while his horns take up the rest of the space. T_T I cry. He is not a giant dragon boi. Still tall, yes, but not giant. So I'm editing a couple lines from this chapter to 22.


	19. Talking To A Stranger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's gonna be awkward and fluffy and weird from this point on. Be warned. XD El has no chill.

I didn’t actually think this person would agree to help me. The cogs in my brain were turning and twisting in all sorts of directions as they tried to figure out what on earth it was that I said that convinced him to do so. Was it because I didn’t know who he was? He said my assumption was correct… but which one did he mean?

Was I right about him being a dorm leader or about him being a fae? I wanted to ask, but the awkwardness was too strong. Instead I found myself trying to remember which aisle the book I found was in, eyes nervously skimming the book titles.

“It was… somewhere around here… aha!” I stood on my toes, a grin spreading along my lips as I reached up and tried to tap the spine of the hardback I wanted to look through. “This one! It’s right… there!”

I huffed, falling onto the bottoms of my feet and stumbling back with a small cough. I winced, a hand around my throat.

“Th… The grimoire.”

The man hummed curiously when I said that, reaching up with ease to pull the large and heavy book off the shelf. He stared at the title curiously and looked down at me, a brow raising as he watched me wheeze and stand up straight. “Little human, are you aware of what this book holds?”

He spoke the question in such a way that it made me hesitate.

“I-I mean…” I glanced at the object he was holding, a part of me wondering if magic books could be haunted. “...based on the title, I’m… I’m assuming it’s about flowers?”

_Et Magicae Flores Historiarum._

I didn’t exactly speak latin, but the first few words seemed obvious enough. It was probably about the history of magic or flowers in this world, which was just as good a lead as any. Maybe roses have special meaning here? I had no idea. Anything was better than nothing, and I was desperate at this point.

The black-haired beauty paused at my answer. I watched as he folded his arms over his chest, the man keeping firm hold of the book. This person was seriously tall. Tall and beautiful and dark, and so very confusing.

His eyes narrowed and I could feel my heart stutter again, my face growing warmer the longer he continued to stare, a sense of unease washing over me when he said, “Indeed it is...”

Because… that meant he knew.

His chartreuse irises were practically glowing in the darkness of the room, so intense it felt like they could see into my very soul. Judging me, scrutinizing every little detail and change in expression, and calculating his words based on that. I knew very well that I should be afraid, that every bone in my body should be telling me to run away.

But I wasn’t. And I didn’t.

I simply remained standing there, unspoken words caught in my wounded throat, my neck craned to meet his gaze.

“Tell me, little human,” The man continued, deep voice low and yet filled with the undertone of intrigue, the barest trace of a fang visible as it tried to poke out from behind his charcoal-colored lips, “are you actually conscious of the rose in your mouth?”

Perhaps... he truly was a fae. Perhaps all faes could see it.

Either way, this meant that there was one more person who knew my secret. A man whose name I still haven’t gotten.

I inhaled sharply, forcing myself to pull my eyes away from his, shaking a little for reasons I still couldn’t quite understand. This wasn’t fear I felt; I knew that much. It was more similar to my anxiety, yet… it was almost like anticipation? Whatever it was, it led to me sliding a foot back, hands curling close to my chest as the needle sharp pains made themselves known in my lungs once more.

I wanted to deny it, to say that I had no idea of what he was talking about, but I found that I couldn’t. There was no point in lying; not to someone so much more powerful than myself. Not to someone older- someone who was, maybe, several centuries of years old.

There was no point.

I would simply be fooling myself if I did.

“So you are.” The man mused, noting my reaction and becoming pleased with the accuracy in his observation and the honesty in my behavior. “A clever little human. A clever little human and yet… you have no idea of who I am.”

Huh? Oh.

_“As long as your heart desires…”_

Thankful for the change of topic, or at the least opportunity to do so, I cleared my throat with a wince and forced myself to step closer to the man- holding a hand out expectantly with a sly grin. It was taking everything I had to try and hide the shaking, the nervousness I felt, and every last ounce of willpower was spent in trying to keep my voice steady.

“Well,” I began, faux confidence in my voice as the strange bubbly feeling inside me took control, “you could fix that, you know. What’s your name?”

“My name?” He looked amused by the question, as if it were the first time he had ever been asked that. His eyes glanced down at my extended hand, pondering the invitation of touch, before slowly outstretching his own. “That is…”

Long slender fingers brushed again my short ones, slowly moving to grasp my palm in a handshake.

_“...take the hand that appears in the mirror.”_

The movement was surprisingly awkward and I found myself slowly growing still as I held his hand, heart rate picking up pace as flashes of thorns and green fire came to mind.

_“For me and for them, and for you... as we are all running out of time.”_

Tightening my hold on his fingers, I had to force myself to smile, pretending that a sharp pain wasn’t on the verge of splitting my skull in half. That my heart wasn’t pounding and roaring in my ears. That I couldn’t taste iron on my tongue.

The man paused in his speech, voice trailing away right before he answered my question.

_“So no matter what…”_

A smile spread across his lips, almost mischievous in nature. “Actually, no. I won’t tell you.”

_“...never let go of that hand.”_

I looked at him in disbelief, eyes growing wide and mouth becoming agape. “S… Seriously?”

This person was the embodiment of beauty itself, a mysterious enigma whom I had only just met, and he wasn’t going to tell me his name? Disappointment painted my features, the feeling only growing when he pulled his hand away from mine.

“Wh-Why not? Is… Is it the curse?”

Did that put him off? Does it freak him out?

That actually hurt more than I expected it to; I had no control over whoever decided to condemn me. I didn’t ask for any of this! I never wanted to be cursed. I could feel my eyes start to sting at the thought, something inside of me really hating the idea of rejection from this stranger.

“Will... Will you not tell me because of the curse? I-I don’t think it affects others, it- well, I mean, depending on the memory it does, but it doesn’t cause them harm; at least, that’s what-”

The man held his hand up, silencing me in a fashion similar to what a certain redhead did to his vice dorm leader earlier this morning. “Not knowing is for your own benefit.” He told me.

I watched as he then held the book out towards me, and in response I shakily reached out and took it- holding the grimoire close and staring up at him, waiting for _some_ kind of explanation. His words had me so utterly lost and confused. I couldn’t understand them.

The man saw this and continued, expression turning quite grim. “The moment you hear my name, a frost will spread over your skin… and chills will go down your spine. Every waking moment will be spent in fear- fear of _me._ For your ignorance, as an exception, I shall allow you to call me whatever you like instead... in place of my name.”

Dude. Holy frick. There was no way he was that scary.

As if to try and prove me wrong he chuckled lowly, the sound near sinister in nature as he raised a curled index finger to his smiling lips. “Of course, you may even come to regret _that_ someday…”

“B-But… h-how am I supposed to, like, find you or anything?” He was being ridiculous.

The man was intimidating, sure, and that evil sounding laugh didn’t really help at all, but I wasn’t anywhere near afraid of him. For some reason I only felt excited, wanting to know more about this stranger and to hear him speak just a little longer.

“I can’t… I can’t talk to you if I can’t find you! Am I supposed to just go and say- oh, hey, have you happened to see this really pretty dude with horns around? Kinda shady, likes to read? I mean, I’m assuming you like to read since you were chilling in the corner with a book and we’re in the library, but…”

I shook my head, not at all noticing the surprise flashing across his face at my words. I huffed, pouting up at him a bit childishly.

“Friendship is supposed to start with names, you know!”

“You think… I am pretty…?” That had him stunned. “You desire… to be friends?”

I made a face. I could the warmth spreading to my cheeks again, the embarrassment and awkwardness I felt leaving very little room for my internal mouth-filter to work as it should, and I proceeded to grow more flustered. I couldn’t quite explain why, but amidst all this misplaced excitement I had the intense urge to compliment this person. “Uh, _yeah._ Have you not looked in a mirror recently? Or at all? At anytime in your life? You’re… you know…”

There was something about the way he had been lounging on that sofa earlier; the blank expression he wore when he first saw me gazing at him. The reason why he wouldn’t tell me his name. For all I knew he could just be in some kind of edge phase, believing himself to be more terrifying than he actually was.

But… the surprise on his face… was so genuine and _real,_ and the way his eyes widened as a result was nearly comical. So, in the end, no matter how anxious or weird I felt about it, I found myself speaking my true thoughts on his appearance, confessing what my first impressions of him were.

“You’re really… beautiful.” I worried my bottom lip, blinking a couple of times as I held tight to the book in my arms, glancing away and then up at him, and away again before I could bring myself to finally meet his startled gaze. Gods, I can’t breathe. He has me freaking out so bad right now. “Like, seriously. How do you not know that?”

“I…” He paused. “I do not often receive compliments on my appearance… from people who are not close to me. Most tend to cower in my presence, and whisper to their companions how frightening my looks are to them.”

After a moment of me staring blatantly in disbelief, he added-

“It does not bother me of course.”

...Holy frick, man. This dude needs a friend.

He seriously said _that_ while wearing the most bothered expression ever. He was such a liar. It was a good thing I was already aiming to befriend him, if only because I thought he was insanely interesting and I wanted to know more about him, but this just strengthened that resolve.

“It totally bothers you.” I deadpanned, completely and utterly convinced. “You’re bothered.”

“I am _not_ bothered.” He reinforced, looking even more annoyed. “I do not mind their tales. It is not as though I will truly set them aflame, not without reason; I have precise control of my magic. I do not go out of my way to curse humans either. Why should their assumptions bother me so? They do not.”

I raised my eyebrows at him, hands on my waist, weight shifted to my right foot. “Uh-huh. Okay, I believe you.” Not. He didn’t notice the sarcasm, however- perhaps because of how cheerfully I said it, and seeing this I sighed. “How am I supposed to come up with a nickname, anyway? I don’t know anything about you! It’ll probably be something really… stupid or… y’know, embarrassing?”

I made a face, trying to give him a small warning of what he was getting himself into.

“A-Are you really okay with that?”

The totally not bitter or bothered stranger observed me for a moment, lovely charcoal lips curling into a smile once more, twisted somewhat in his amusement. Hand cupping his chin, his dark eyelashes fluttered, almost appearing illuminated by the green glow of his bright eyes.

“If it’s from you, then perhaps.” He mused, the dark and chocolaty sound of his chuckle leaving me feeling all sorts of weird and warm and awkward. “Do not disappoint me, child of man. Ah, but then… what should I call you, I wonder?”

His chartreuse orbs flashed dangerously, the man stepping forward so he was directly in front of me, leaning down just slightly as he continued to tower over my small form.

“Will you give me your name?”

I hated the way I could feel red flush all over my face- down from my neck all the way to the tips of my ears- from how he had asked that. Then the meaning of his words hit me and I blinked, eyebrows furrowing in befuddlement.

“I… didn’t I do that already?” I could have sworn I told him what it was. “Um, sorry, I- uh...”

Wow. Calm down, girl. Everything is fine. Just breathe. There is no reason for me to be this flustered; sure, he’s a very pretty, super attractive, nearly seven foot tall immortal with pointed ears and a pair of horns sticking out of his head. Who cares? I certainly don’t.

Although I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to… maybe… you know… hold his hand again.

_No, bad thoughts! Bad thoughts go away!_

I stammered on the words, voice catching on my tongue and creating a string of incomprehensible vowels and consonants. I had wanted to explain myself, to apologize for not having told him my name when we already shook hands and exchanged pleasantries, but it came out a fumbled mess.

Ugh… I was never very eloquent when it came to speaking, but this was the worst! He probably thinks I’m an idiot now- and not the loveable kind either. Just a great big fool who can’t even tell someone her name.

How the _frick_ do you even speak this language? It feels like I’ve forgotten.

“My name… My name is…” Uh. “I-I can’t- I can’t think. Uh, one sec.”

_Breathe!_

“I… I’m so sorry…! I know I didn’t just forget my name. Holy frick.”

I raised a hand up to try and hide my face, turning away and looking to the side with wide eyes and red cheeks, more than a little horrified at how I was acting. This was a version of me that I hated. A version I had hoped to keep locked up for the rest of my life. At least with the one teacher I still had a decent control over my brain and the sentences I blurted out, but with this man? Evidently not.

“O-Okay…” I inhaled deeply, blinking a couple of times once I had managed to regain some of my composure, turning back around to meet the gaze of a heavily amused fae, my free hand flailing about as I panicked. “Sorry about that! Um, that was… weird. I-I’m not normally like this, I-I promise; my brain just… blanked and I forgot how to words. Anyways- my name!”

“Yes.” He smirked. “Please, give it to me so I know what to call you.”

Right!

I cleared my throat with a wince, not really sure what I was doing as I outstretched my previously flailing hand for another shake- heart beating almost in sync with the dark red flush coloring my face and ears. I hated this so much. I wanted to crawl in a hole and disappear; to let the curse overtake me and just rid me of this awkwardness and embarrassment, and all the weird feelings that meeting this person created.

“I-I still think it’s unfair that you won’t tell me yours, just… just so you know.” I added, as if trying to stall the end of the conversation.

The fact that I wanted so desperately to keep talking to him annoyed me. I pretended not to notice the way my skin tingled or how my heart practically jumped when he grasped my outstretched hand again, or how happy I was that he did so. I also pretended not to notice how _tiny_ I was compared to him, and how his hand practically enveloped my own.

I was trying to pout and frown, and basically just do anything that could show irritation, but I was smiling too stupidly wide to do so. I felt like such a fool.

A stupid, nineteen-year-old, love struck fool who was becoming tongue-tied over a man she just met.

“B-But, you know,” I continued again, heart leaping into my throat as I became all too conscious and aware of how close he was, and the feeling of his leather gloved fingers being wrapped around my own, “because I like to think that I’m at least a _little_ bit nice, I guess I’ll tell you.”

Damn it, damn it, damn it~! I refuse! I hate this feeling! Make it go away! I don’t want it!

My goofy smile broadened, caution thrown to the wind. “It’s Elea-”

The sound of the library door opening saved me.

Bells echoed about, signaling someone’s entry into the building, and I cut myself off- automatically distracted by the disruption. Chartreuse eyes glimmered dangerously in annoyance at the interruption, and I turned my head- standing on my toes to try and see over the railing to make out who had entered. I squinted.

“Is… Is that Trey? No, not Trey… he’s green. That’s red and blue and… ah!” Frick, my friends were here. No, wait, that’s a good thing. Thank gods; I can make an escape! I looked back at up the stranger I was talking to, then at our hands. There was something seriously familiar about all of this. “I-I gotta go! Sorry!”

Though I had been the one to reach my hand out first, I found myself pulling it away in a flustered panic. Before I could finish doing so, however, his hold tightened considerably and kept me from leaving. I looked up at him in surprise when he did so.

“You said you would find me.” He stated, the gleam in his eyes utterly mesmerizing, locking me in place. “Will you do so?”

“Wh-What?” My voice squeaked. It took a few seconds for my mind to catch up. “O-Oh! Right. Yeah. Uh, p-probably. Someday. When, y’know, I have time.”

Which is most likely never considering the amount of chaos I’ve been getting myself into.

“Good.” He released his hold of my hand, allowing me to pull back and cradle the book he had gotten down for me, the hard back rather heavy in my weak arms. His eyelashes fluttered again and the air around him seemed to heat up- quite literally- in a fashion similar to another fae I had met. A smirk played on his breathtaking charcoal-colored lips. “I shall look forward to it.”

He then disappeared- in sparks of light and of fireflies.

Whoa.

I found myself wondering about _who_ I just met and _what_ sort of promise I had accidentally found myself making, and if my poor beating heart would let me live in peace without it’s annoying interference. I stared down at the hand he had been holding, then bit my bottom lip and squeezed my eyes shut, pressing the back of my knuckles to my mouth as I resisted the urge to freak.

Or, rather… to be more accurate, I guess… to keep myself from squealing. That was seriously so weird a-and strange, and I don’t know how else to describe it without admitting certain things, and- _ugh_ , I hated this.

Wait...

“I never gave him my name.”

Hold up. Gave. I never _gave_ him my name. He, a fae, specifically asked for me to _give_ him my name. Though still exceedingly flustered and embarrassed, a mixture of horror and understanding dawned on me and I slumped over, letting out a huge sigh of relief.

“I dodged a bullet…”

“HUMAAAAN~!” I jolted. Oh, right, Grim! Frick. I whirled around at the sound, nearly jumping as my anxiety had me more skittish than usual after such a heart rattling encounter. “WHERE ARE YOOUUU!?”

It didn’t take long for one of the boys to clamp a hand over the cat monster’s mouth. We were in a library after all, a place meant for quiet. Granted, considering the amount of chatting I had just done, I really shouldn’t be the one to talk bad about his shouting. I shook my head, trying to force all the weird jitters and annoying butterflies away. Deuce and Ace seriously just saved me right then.

I was so freaked and panicked; words were coming out of my mouth without me having any control of them. If the door didn’t open when it did, I would have seriously given that person my name. Talk about a close one. Oof.

With any luck, I won’t actually wind up seeing him again. That means I’m safe.

Well, as safe as I can be while in this nightmare of a school. Let’s just head down the stairs and stop thinking about the man we just met, and- _whoa!_

I barely even had time to yelp before I was sliding down the stairs, a hand shooting out to grab the hem of my skirt so it wouldn’t hike up and my other holding tight to the book tucked in my arm, eyes squeezing shut as pain erupted in my rear and lower back. It was quite a flight of stairs, too, so when I finally reached the bottom of the staircase my entire lower body ached. It would have been nice if my fall ended there, but unfortunately the speed of which my feet met the floor had me falling forward from momentum- and I barely turned my body in time to land hard on my side.

“...O-Owww…”

Ace doubled over in laughter at my late reaction. He was grinning ear-to-ear, snickering and snorting and slapping his thigh, having an absolute _field day_ as he pointed me, tears welling up in his eyes. “Wh-What the _hell_ , El!?Bwahaha! A-Are you… Are you alright!?”

I would be if he stopped laughing. Even Grim was snickering at me.

I scowled and glared at them, sour expression far from happy. At least Deuce was trying to be kind, extending a hand and helping me out. It was clear he wanted to laugh a _little_ at my recurring clumsiness, but he was doing his best to act polite. “You should be more careful!” The blue-haired teen scolded lightly, eyes worried and a bit amused. “Watch where you step!”

“I-I was!” I defended, wheezing a little. “I just…”

I got distracted. Oh man, I’m so dizzy now… eugh... I hate my life. I flinched and stumbled a little, nearly dropping the book I had worked so hard to get, but thanks to the gloved hand on my arm I remained standing. The annoying part of me wished it had belonged to the stranger I just met.

“Easy now.” Deuce said quietly. “Let’s go find a spot to wait for Trey. If he didn’t come earlier, he should be coming during the first few minutes of lunch.”

Man, I completely forgot about that. Here’s to hoping I didn’t completely miss him because of that one person… I would never let myself live that down. I wanted to be the responsible, independent adult everyone back home expected me to be, that I felt I was supposed to be, but then… I let things like the party and this happen. I seriously let myself get so caught up in conversation that I forgot to keep a look-out.

I’m such an idiot…

 _But, at least…_ I bit the corner of my lip, fighting the urge to grin like a goof. _...that person didn’t seem to mind._

No! No. Stop that. I just met him, I’m not… no. I scrunched my nose up, sitting down at a spot near the back where we could keep watch. Ace was determined to jump out at Trey and surprise him with our “clever” little scheme, and I wasn’t about to argue. I need to relax and catch my breath.

To do so, I hugged the book in my arms close and closed my eyes, using Deuce’s shoulder as a pillow. He was starting to get used to all the displays of affection, thank gods, so he wasn’t tensing up or acting as uncomfortable as usual. I think he actually kind of liked it. I craved physical affection, so I was often seeking it out.

It was just… receiving it that bothered me.

The way that person had grabbed my hand… it took me so off guard. Gods, I hate my life. I hate this, I hate these thoughts, and I hate that I wanted to keep talking to him! To keep holding his… his hand. Stupid brain; it knows I don’t do relationships. I just have to smother these feelings until they disappear.

It’s fine. He’s an immortal anyway. I’m probably nothing more than an interesting bug to him.

A _thorn_ in his side, if you will.

But… he wants me to find him again, right? So that means he might like to be friends? It was almost funny how the most natural things to say in a conversation had him becoming so shocked. As though he were unused to it. Unused to civility. It… was really cute. I just wanted to pat him on the head and shower him with all the compliments.

I did have to wonder, though; why would anyone think he would light them on fire? Were they intimidated by his height? I mean, he did sort of radiate an aura of raw power and strength… so I guess I can sort of see why they’d be scared of him. I’m a little surprised I’m not more afraid of him myself. Am I desensitized to it because of all the things I’ve witnessed in the three days I’ve been here?

...Maybe. Although that collar spell did have me fearing for my life…

No. You know what? I’m just not going to think about it.

Everything is fine. A-okay. I don’t know his name, he doesn’t know mine; all is well. I probably won’t even be able to find him without his name, so what’s the point? There might be dozens of people in this school who are incredibly tall with horns on their head. I might as well not even try.

_He’s Diasomnia though…_

Lilia probably knows him. The chances are even higher since they’re both faeries. I wonder if I’ll even get a chance to ask before he notices the curse has worsened. A tap on my arm caught my attention and I blinked, grateful for the distraction as I turned to see Grim looking at the book I was holding. “What’s that?”

Crap. I didn’t think to come up with an excuse for it yet. “It’s… a book.” I said lamely, holding it up so he could get a better view. “I started feeling better, so… I wanted to read some.”

“What’s it about?”

I shrugged. “Flowers, I think. I wasn’t actually able to look through it yet.”

“Sounds lame.” Grim stated. He scrunched his nose up, making a face. “You should have grabbed a book about fish instead! Now _that’d_ be interesting. Fish are super tasty! Oooh, maybe there’s a book about which ones taste best?”

“All you think about is food.” Ace sighed, shaking his head.

Deuce nodded in agreement. “You never get this excited about anything else. Ah- keep it down, though, okay? Just while we’re in here. The librarian is still mad at us for you yelling earlier…”

“I was trying to find Eleanora!” Grim defended, and I was surprised by the use of my name. He rarely called me by it. “It’s not my fault she she hid in a weird place.”

“I-I was not _hiding_!” I protested, wincing at the ache in my throat. “I-It just… I wanted to look for books up there, and I had to ask this dude for help to reach it. H-He was really weird and we talked a bit, and that’s why I was up there for so long!”

“Some dude?” Ace narrowed his eyes. “What did he look like? Did he try anything?”

Huh? That was not the reaction I was expecting, but considering how adamant he was about the school being full of “wolves” I suppose it made sense. I blinked, looking at the ginger in confusion. Considering how half the student body was glaring at me today, it didn’t seem like he was far off from the truth. Back home my dad always liked to go on and on about how people, specifically men, would take advantage of me if I wasn’t careful.

I tried not to think about it, so I pretended not to be bothered about it, but there were so many terrible things I would hear and read about that it was hard not to. The fact that I was in an all boys school only gave me more reason to worry, especially since I apparently had a target painted on my back for trouble. It truly was pure luck that I had Ace and Deuce to look out for me.

Because, despite all the friendly guys I’ve met here, it didn’t change the fact that this school was full of terrible people. Crowley practically sealed my fate by making me a half-student here.

But the person I just met… that stranger…

I don’t think he would hurt me. He sort of reminded me of the ghosts; there was something almost… lonely in the way he was reading in the corner. In the way he turned to look at me once he saw me approach.

I found myself struggling to answer. “He was… He was nice… so… no? He didn’t try anything?”

I brought a hand up and ruffled my hair, looking away a little red-faced as I tried to think of how to describe the person in as neutral a way as possible. He really had been nice. Super nice. Of course, that could just be my poor thirsty-ass heart wanting view him that way.

“He was… super tall though. Um, he wouldn’t tell me his name, but he had horns on his head…” 

“What?” Grim sat up, blue eyes wide. “You met a weirdo with horns on his head, but you don’t know his name!?”

“N-No?”

Deuce frowned, leaning back into his seat and crossing his arms over his chest. “That sounds suspicious… I don’t trust him.” I almost snorted at that. He hasn’t even met the guy. “You should stay away from him- or from any other strangers for that matter. Ace is right; men are wolves.”

“I mean, I don’t even know if I’ll see him again, so.” I shrugged. “But yeah, he wouldn’t tell me his name. He just told me to call him whatever.”

Ace grimaced. I always thought Deuce was the more protective of the two, but I’m beginning to think that I was wrong. Grim tilted his head, humming in thought for a moment as his tail swished behind him. “A human with horns… oh! I know! Why don’t you call him “Mr. Horns” then?”

Wait, really? That was so simple. It was also… actually rather cute.

That stranger was so tall and intimidating. To call him by such an adorable nickname… fufu~ I have to do it now. I grinned wickedly at hearing his suggestion, reaching a hand up and placing it on the cat monster’s head, pulling him into my arms and scratching behind his fiery ears. The book was left forgotten on the table. “You’re a genius, Grim!”

He puffed out his chest, lips curled up in a toothy grin. “I _am_ the Great Grim, after all! We’ll probably run into that guy if he’s a student here, so you gotta introduce me! I’ve never seen a human with horns before!”

I was about to inform him that the man _wasn’t_ actually a human with horns, and was really a fae, but before I could the sound of bells ringing caught out attention. We all turned to see the doors open, a certain green-haired third-year wandering over to the return desk. His head was held low, his shoulders slumped like something heavy was weighing on his mind.

Ace hurriedly reached over the table and smacked Deuce on the shoulder, pushing the boy into standing and making his way to Trey. The third-year was just about to leave the library when Deuce caught his arm, startling him. “What!? Deuce-?”

Deuce didn’t give him time to finish, dragging him to our table and leaving the man more than a little disgruntled. Glasses a little crooked from the shoving and rough movement, Trey blinked at us. I set the cat monster back down in his chair.

“Ace, Eleanora?” His amber eyes went wide. “And Grim, too? What are you all doing here- actually, no. What do you want?” He tugged his arm away, frowning at the blue-haired teen. “Why did you grab me like that?”

Oof, straight to the point. Deuce pulled out a chair, answering his question quietly. “We figured you would come to the library to return the cook book, so we waited here for you to show up. Sorry.”

“I’m _not_ sorry.” Ace stated, slamming his hands on the table and standing up, glaring at Trey. “We really can’t agree with the way Riddle does things.”

Trey hesitated before turning away, pushing his glasses up with a pained expression as he took a seat at the table next to Grim. Deuce followed suit, sitting beside Ace. “...You and everyone else, I bet.” The boy sighed, propping an elbow up and resting his forehead in his hand- like he had some sort of headache.

Honestly, I could relate.

Ace leaned forward upon seeing his reaction, crimson gaze intense. Voice hushed, he demanded, “What do you _truly_ think of him, huh? Were you really childhood friends? If so, have you always been so… so subservient to him!?”

Trey tensed, movement sharp as he snapped his head up to look at the ginger. “Who did you hear that from?”

“Some guy named Chen’ya.” Deuce told him, frowning deeply. “You know him?”

“Chen’ya…” Trey murmured, momentarily confused before realization flashed across his face. He grimaced, annoyed. “Ah, that guy. Of course he would bring that up.”

So he did know him! What was their relationship? Did they know each other since they were kids as well? Maybe he was a neighbor or something… hmm. There are so many possibilities, and trying to think of them was making my head spin. It really was so aggravating; I can’t try and think of anything pertaining to a certain redheaded dorm leader without growing nauseous.

I bit the inside of my cheek, feeling a burn in the back of my throat. I could taste the blood and vomit, and I raised a hand up to my mouth, forcibly swallowing it back down. It was so gross.

“H-He told us…” I cringed. “He told us… to talk to you about it.”

Grim nodded. “Yeah. And aren’t you older than Riddle? Just get angry at him! It’s not that hard, right?”

“That’s…” Trey inhaled deeply, solemnity coloring his features. “That’s something I would normally do if I felt it necessary, but…” He closed his eyes, lowering his hands to the table and lacing his fingers together, leather gloves creaking. His voice was so quiet we almost didn’t hear him. “I just can’t. I can’t bring myself to scold him.”

“Why not?” Ace demanded.

“Everything Riddle _is_ was _made_ by following strict rules.” Trey explained, amber eyes flickering with emotion, pained and hurt and frustrated and… concerned. He looked up at us, nothing but worry for his friend showing in his gaze, but the sensation of feeling so useless to actually help becoming clear with his words and voice. “Back home, where he’s from, there isn’t a single person who hasn’t heard of the Rosehearts family. His parents were well-known as incredibly powerful healers.”

My skull started throbbing again, flashes of red hair coming to mind; a small child running about, crying. Sobbing his eyes at out for someone, pleading to go outside and play. To eat a tart on his birthday.

“His mother especially exceptional and, as a result, she wanted Riddle to be so as well.”

A tiny hand grasping my own, puffy storm grey eyes looking up and meeting my gaze. A quiet and shaky voice… wondering if we could have had a chance to be friends if he were allowed a bit more freedom.

“From dawn to dusk, every move was decided for him. From what he ate, what he wore, what he studied and practiced, and even to his friends… everything, no matter how big or small, she controlled. But, despite it all, no matter how much it hurt and how much he hated it, Riddle never said a word. He strived to meet those expectations.”

The things he forced himself to do… the words he told himself to believe that he was doing the right thing…

“Because of that, because of all that hard work and suffering, he managed to complete his _unique magic_ by the age of ten. He even managed to maintain his spot at the top of the class since elementary school. I can’t…” Trey inhaled deeply, shaking his head with furrowed brows. “I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult that must have been.”

A heavy silence filled the air.

I was shaking, hunched over, my fingers tangling themselves in my hair, skull throbbing and feeling like it might split, the sharp pains in my chest worsening with every shaky breath. My vision blurred as my eyes began to sting, heart aching and breaking for this boy- _this child-_ who was never given a chance to be himself.

“H-His mother… is the reason for it?” It should have surprised me. I know it should have, but it didn’t. It was as if I expected this answer. This outcome. “She… She did this… to him?”

“Riddle thinks being bound by strict rules is for one’s own benefit.” Trey informed softly. “He lived his life with them and became an exceptional leader, so why shouldn’t it work for others? That is what he believes. He thinks anyone can became as great as him.”

That’s just… awful. No. No, no, no! Why would some do that to their kid? That isn’t how you parent at all. You’re forcing your own will and expectations onto the child, beating their thoughts and emotions down until they’re hardly anything more than an obedient doll. I can’t… no. I will _never_ understand those who hurt others like that.

I-I can’t believe that… Riddle hasn’t lashed out yet. At her. At his mother and his father.

He deserved better than that.

In all the things he was forced to do, did she at least tell him he did a good job? Did she pat him on the head at all or even hug him?

I heavily doubted it.

I squeezed my eyes shut and grit my teeth, fingers sliding out of my hair and instead lacing together on my lap, hands pressed and clenched together so tightly my knuckles turned white.

Everything hurt so much; I felt like I was going to pass out if I tried to think anymore about it, but in the depths of my memory I could barely recall it- a dream in which I held a child’s hand. He clung so tightly, and when I rested my hand ever so gently atop his head he cried. He cried at the loss of the love and affection he was never able to have.

“Which means, to him,” Trey said, snapping me out of my thoughts, causing me to look up at him with wide, teary eyes, “breaking the rules in unacceptable. I mean…”

Ace finished the man’s train of thought, breaking the silence forcing the others to stay quiet. “If he gives rule violation any sort of positive reaction, then that means… going against the way he was made… right?” He asked, pausing between sentences as a way for him to try and get his own feelings on this matter sorted.

Trey didn’t answer at first. After a moment he closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, then blinked and focused his attention on the ginger. “...I understand why you think Riddle is a tyrant, and that his way of doing things is incorrect. But… as for me, I… I just can’t scold him. He’s been through too much. I know I should be angry and I should get mad at him, but… knowing all of this… it makes me hesitate.”

I get it…

I understand why he feels that way.

Knowing someone you care about having such a dark and heavy past as that- it isn’t easy to speak up about their wrong doings, especially since their actions derived from that said past. However… that isn’t right. That could hardly even be considered a friendship. You were simply feeding into their obsessive, controlling behavior and making things worse.

Grim sniffled, blinking furiously to try and hide the fact that he was close to crying. “Th-That’s…”   
  


“To think the dorm leader has a past like that…” Deuce folded his arms over his chest, brows furrowing as a troubled expression formed on his face. “I never would have guessed…”

“After hearing all of that,” Ace began, raising his voice a little and catching everyone’s attention, “I finally understand.”

His red eyes narrowed at Trey, who looked surprised at his change of tone.

“The reason Riddle is like this… it’s _your_ fault.”

Deuce, Grim, and I all looked at the ginger with startled expressions, alarmed by his choice of words.

The first-year ignored us, instead standing up and hovering over the table, glaring at the upperclassman. “Riddle had no say in who his parents were, but you thought they were acting out of hand for a while, right?”

Trey faltered. The ginger continued,

“If you think Riddle is making the same mistakes his parents did, say so! Put him on the right track. What have you accomplished by feeling sorry for him? For indulging him? Poor Riddle this, poor Riddle that; are you just gonna stand by and watch him become isolated and hated by everyone!?”

The third-year said nothing, expression contorting into something I couldn’t quite describe. Frustration, perhaps, would be the easiest way to explain it, but there was something more there. Something deeper and more intense. Deuce looked at our ginger companion with wide eyes, standing up himself. He glared at his classmate.

“Oi, Ace! What are you trying to do!?”

No. No, this was actually _right._ I reached up, pulling on the hem of Deuce’s sleeve to get him to stop. He looked down at me, surprised, and I gave him a look- shaking my head firmly. Though confused and a bit at a loss as to what was happening, he turned and watched as the rest of the conversation played out, Ace speaking what felt like certain truth, attempting to get the older teen to act.

“Why don’t you do something, huh?” Ace hissed. “What are you keepin’ quiet for? Is it ‘cause you’re afraid you’re gonna lose your head?”

A wicked grin coiled on his lips and he pulled back, placing a hand on his hips.

“So lame~ what kind of vice dorm leader are you?” Ace laughed, before he suddenly starting glaring again, voice raising into a near shout, “You’re not childhood friends; you can barely even call yourself a _friend!_ You’re just a fraud, Trey!”

No one was prepared for what happened next.

“HEY!” We all whirled around, and the amount of pure _bitterness_ that welled up inside me upon seeing the headmaster storming his way over to us was something I couldn’t even begin to define. He waved a hand at us angrily, shouting at the top of his lungs. “YOU ALL NEED TO BE QUIET! WE ARE IN A _LIBRARY!_ THIS IS A PLACE OF LEARNING, NOT A CIRCUS TO PLAY IN!”

“You’re the loudest here.” Grim deadpanned, just as done with him as I was.

Headmaster Crowley stumbled at that, coming to a halt. “O-Oh, really?” He cleared his throat, voice quieting substantially, the adult fixing his tie. When he spoke again, it was in the most exaggerated whisper. “Goodness… honestly, the library is a place of _studying_. If you’re not going to read or work on homework, go somewhere else!”

I squinted, staring at him suspiciously. “What’re you even doing here?” I had the urge to smack him with a book. And sure, maybe I could have said what I did nicer, but I really didn’t care at this point. I’ve had a terrible morning and I’ve really come to dislike this person.

He was probably going to claim something ridiculous… I’m calling it now.

“I was researching a way for you to get back home to your own world, of course!” He said, actually managing to surprise me. The serious way he said it actually had me believing him for a second. “I didn’t forget, you see? I am _so_ kind, after all.”

The boys were aware of my situation, so they weren’t too startled by the sudden info drop, but a certain third-year was… not? Hey, how come he didn’t look surprised? Wait- actually, didn’t he say Riddle told him about me when we first met in the cafeteria? Holy frick. I guess the dorm leader informed him on more than what I initially believed. Huh…

“Research does begin in the library, after all.” Headmaster Crowley continued, raising his chin up so the beak of his mask was pointed at the ceiling. He was grinning widely, clawed fingers on his hips. “I am most _definitely, definitely_ not here to finish reading the latest edition of a very particular novel before anyone else can~ not at all! Researching is what I do! Nothing else! Because I am kind!”

My face dropped into something sour, what little remaining bit of hope I didn’t realize I had vanishing. “Uh-huh…”

“I’m glad you understand!” He exclaimed, beaming at me as he pat me on the head. “A-Anyway,” He looked away, avoiding my eyes to focus on the others, “what are you all doing here with such sad expressions? Did something happen?”

He spoke as if he actually cared. I turned away, bitter and spiteful towards this man and the school he ran. The boys, Grim included, looked at me with almost pitying expressions before turning back to the headmaster. Deuce was the one to speak.

“About that…” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to put in several Sleeping Beauty references/quotes, haha. Namely when Phillip meets Briar Rose and tries asking for her name, and then she runs away. I'm weak for references, lol. 
> 
> "Oh, yes, my name... My name is- oh, no, I-I can't!"
> 
> runs off
> 
> "Will I ever see you again?" Phillip
> 
> "Oh, never! Never!" Rose
> 
> "Never!?" Phillip
> 
> "Well, maybe someday!" Rose
> 
> Also when she saw Ace and Deuce. "No, not Trey- he's green... um, red, blue..." The three good fairies. Although strictly speaking Flora is pink and not red, but...
> 
> ANYWAY we got so much Mal this chapter, haha. Our boi be showing up again soon too, haha. Won't say when, but... (waggles eyebrows) it's soon. Gotta get that development! Also, I finally finished reading translations of the Ghost Wedding and YASSSS True Love's kiss is a thing in the game! That makes me so happy. Also pretty sure Eliza is twisted from Corpse Bride's Emily. BUT ANYWAY! What did you guys think of the chapter? 
> 
> El is remembering things~! Hopefully the Mal/El convo was enjoyable. I had fun writing it. El just went major "heart eyes" at Malleus and hates herself for it. XD 
> 
> What did you guys think of the chapter 1 flashback? I've been planning that for their meeting ever since I wrote that first scene. XD Also, Mal didn't get El's name that time, but we finally have the "Mr. Horns" nickname. Also I literally just google translated the latin, please don't hate me. T_T 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this! WE'RE SO CLOSE TO OVERBLOT! 
> 
> (Gives hugs) Thank you for all the love and support! Stay safe, and have an awesome day/night!


	20. A Midnight Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That awkward moment when you figure everything out in your dreams, but you can't remember anything after you wake up.

It was a long story. 

The headmaster listened with surprising attentiveness, pulling out a chair and sitting beside Ace, crossing one leg over the other as he curled his fingers under his chin, humming thoughtfully as he took in what was said. “I see… so that is the situation. You’re against apologizing to get the collar removed, but you don’t feel that you can convince Riddle to let all of this go without causing a fuss.”

Basically, I guess. Both students were exceptionally stubborn, and I highly doubted the dorm leader was in a good mood after this morning. Any leniency he had, even towards me, was probably completely gone by now.

“That sounds about right, yeah.” Ace nodded, a scowl on his face as he recalled the party.

“Well,” Headmaster Crowley flicked his glowing yellow eyes up, meeting the ginger’s gaze, “if you don’t think you’re able to compromise with the dorm leader, there is always the option of transferring dormitories. Unfortunately, your dorm was chosen by the magic mirror after it observed the quality of your soul, so there are quite a number of troublesome procedures and rituals required in order to do so.”

I made a face, turning to look at Ace. “So you really _are_ joining Ramshackle?”

“I really don’t want to share the dorm with him.” Grim grumbled. “But it would make handling those ghosts easier. They might start pranking him instead of me, y’know?”

That would be his concern, wouldn’t it? I sighed and pulled the cat monster back onto my lap, holding him and carefully scratching behind his ears. I could feel him lean into the touch, a quiet purr rumbling through his chest- not that he would ever admit it, I’m sure. I waited patiently for Ace’s answer, tilting my head and watching as he went into deep though, contemplating his choices. “Well?”

“...Nah.” The ginger shook his head, eyebrows furrowing as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Transferring now after what happened… that’s the coward’s way out. I refuse to run away.”

Headmaster Crowley pursed his lips together, pondering other choices. His eyes brightened and a smile suddenly spread across his face, the adult sitting up excitedly. “Then why don’t you apply for a decisive match with Mr. Rosehearts in order to take his place as dorm leader?”

All of the boys shouted, startled by the suggestion, and I sat up straight, staring at him with big eyes, unable to believe what I just heard. He was kidding, right? Ace was nowhere _near_ skilled enough in magic to take down Riddle! He would make the worst leader, too. I cringed just imagining it.

Ace was impulsive, two-faced, and more selfish than not. Riddle, while close to being a complete tyrant, had far more leadership skills. He was powerful and intimidating, and while his way of instructing others wasn’t the best it was mentioned at least twice that no student from his dorm had been expelled or held back a year due to the strict enforcement of rules. I…

Holy frick.

I have no idea which would be worse or which would be better. If Riddle could become a little more lax about rule breaking and maybe hold back a bit when it came to punishment, things would be perfect. But to keep his tyranny, something brought on by his emotionally and mentally abusive mother, or to switch him out with Ace, who probably wouldn’t put any effort into leading at all… was a choice not easily made.

The headmaster glared at the boys when their shouts died down, his voice a hushed whisper. “Watch it! You’re all yelling again!”

“Because you’re saying really crazy things!” Ace retorted, voice dropping dramatically low in terms of volume to mimic him.

“It’s not crazy at all.” Headmaster Crowley refuted. “After all, that’s how Mr. Rosehearts himself became dorm leader.”

Wait, really? I blinked at that.

Deuce frowned, confusion flickering across his features. “Now that you mention it… how _are_ dorm leaders chosen here?”

“Oh, yeah. How _is_ that done?” Grim scrunched up his nose. “We heard that Riddle became dorm leader after his first week of school.”

“There are many ways.” Headmaster Crowley informed, folding his arms over his chest, leaning back into his seat. “Being nominated by the previous dorm leader, winning a decisive match against the current dorm leader, and other ways like that. Depending on the dorm, there can even be a completely unique way of going about it, but the decisive match is one of the more simple.”

Ace frowned, narrowing his eyes. “Isn’t using magic to settle personal squabbles prohibited though? Won’t we get in trouble if we try to fight him?”

I scooted my chair out further away, disturbed by the cheery grin the headmaster was wearing. He looked a little too happy about all of this for my liking.

“Oh, absolutely!” Headmaster Crowley chirped, bringing his hands up and pressing his fingertips together in front of him. I found it hard to believe that this strange person was the one I had to rely on for food and shelter. “But if you go through the proper channels and speak with the _headmaster_ about it…”

His glowing yellow eyes flickered, sharp teeth poking out from behind purple lips as he grinned, clearly letting everyone know he was on board with this idea while referring to himself in third person.

“...and ask him to oversee a decisive match- well, that’s a different matter entirely.”

Trey, who had kept quiet, finally spoke up- understanding dawning on his face. “It’s prohibited to place handicaps on your opponent before a decisive match, too, and the person you would face is all for following the rules, so…” He looked at the boys sitting across from us. “You would be able to get the collars removed without apologizing.”

Headmaster Crowley nodded fervently. “Yes! And all students are given the right to challenge their dorm leader and take the role for themselves the moment they step foot into this school. What say you, Mr. Trappola?” The man inquired, enthusiastic about this idea. I was starting to become convinced the only reason he was helping us at all was because he thrived off drama. “Will you step up and challenge Mr. Rosehearts?”

Ace faltered for a second, but then his expression twisted into something determined and fierce. He stood up, pushing his chair out. “Alright, fine. I won’t know until I try!”

Deuce got out of his seat too, pushing the chair in and slamming his right fist into his left palm. “Count me in, too!”

“Don’t forget me!”

I yelped when Grim jumped out of my hold, standing on the book a certain fae had went out of his way to get for me. “Oh no…”

This was going to be bad; all the boys were going to get their rears handed to them by the redhead. Riddle was going to massacre them. He might return their magic, but I had no doubt he was going to take it back again just as quickly once given the chance.

“I’m still mad about the tart!”

Headmaster Crowley shook his head at the cat monster, bringing a hand up to his chin. “Grim, as much as I know you’d like to battle him, students from another dorm are, unfortunately, not allowed to issue a challenge.”

“F-Fnnaagh!?” Grim sputtered. “Th-Then who’s going to remove my collar!?”

Ace grinned, turning to look down at him. “I’ll order Riddle to take it off if I become dorm leader.” 

Grim cursed. “Shit… this was going to be my chance to show off my skills!”

“Are you guys serious?” Trey was in disbelief. He then frowned, face hardening as he looked at them with stern eyes. “Deuce, I never would have expected this from you!”

“Really?” Deuce mused, a twisted smile curling onto his face as he cracked his knuckles. His other personality was starting to show through. “As man, don’t you want to aim for the top sometimes? If we’re doing this, then count me in. Ace and I will make it a team-play.”

Ace smirked, leaning over and elbowing the blue-haired teen in the side. “I was waiting for that switch! Bad Boy Deuce-Mode has arrived!”

Deuce jolted at that, looking at him with big eyes. “I-It’s… It’s normal? That personality of mine is considered normal to you!?”

“Kinda, yeah.” I said, lowering my head, shoulders slumping over. This was all one great big disaster. “Sorry.”

“E-Eleanora!” Trey exclaimed, turning to look down at me, his amber eyes somewhat pleading. “Can’t you stop them? They listen to you, don’t they?”

I almost snorted at that. Making a face and leaning back into my seat, already exhausted just imagining what insanity was about to follow very soon, I looked at the freshmen. “I wish…” There was nothing I could say or do that would change their minds. Not in this sort of situation.

Ace has been on a mission since day one.

Taking a deep breath and coughing a little, I added with a grimace, “That apology tart _was_ me trying to stop them from doing something like this.”

Trey went silent at that, guilt momentarily flashing across his features. He seemed to be remembering what happened at the party, the third-year turning his head away. The man looked like he wanted to apologize for what happened, but before he could the headmaster stood up, placing his hands on his hips.

“I shall take care of all the bureaucratic matters!”

“What about a plan?” I suggested, despite fully knowing how hopeless it was. I sat up straight, leaning over and placing my hands on the large grimoire in front of me, sliding it closer to my chest. “Riddle is super powerful, right? You guys hardly _know_ any magic.”

Ace cringed. “Yeah, good point. Anyone have any bright ideas?”

“Uh…” Deuce deflated slightly, the excitement from before dissipating. “I don’t see us defeating him in terms of magic, but…” He cleared his throat, holding his fists up in the air. “If it’s a fist fight, we got this!”

I did my best not to remember the bloody faces of those delinquents. Grim curled his lips into a twisted grin, sharp teeth bared for all to see. “True... he does seem like a little weakling! I doubt he has any muscle at all!”

“Ah, my bad.” Headmaster Crowley suddenly said, catching everyone’s attention. “I forgot to mention; any attacks other than magic are completely forbidden in a decisive match.”

Deuce choked, and seeing this the headmaster began to laugh. He whirled around, brushing his cape with his arm to make it fly up dramatically, head leaning back as he continued to cackle.

“Follow the rules and enjoy your match! Ahaha! The formalities will be taken care of tomorrow, so be mindful of the timing!” He waved a hand in the air, walking off. “I bid you all adieu!”

The boys were starting to look super nervous now. Ace was actually sweating a little. “O-Okay, I’m not that confident in our magic, but… I’m sure it’ll be fine! Right? Right.”

“Right!” Deuce hurriedly agreed.

“I’ve still got this collar on me,” Grim growled, “so you two better go all out!”

I groaned, planting my forehead onto the book. “This is gonna be a disaster.”

Trey stared, and I couldn’t tell if he was in awe of the boys readiness to set Riddle straight or if he was simply stunned by their stupidity. “You guys…”

“Don’t worry about it, El!” Ace said, planting his hands on the table and leaning over with a grin, red eyes focusing on me. “We got this! And when I become dorm leader, I’m gonna make Riddle say: _I’m so sorry, I was wrong!_ And I’ll stop him paralyzing everyone with his stupid rules! Then, if someone ever tries to attack you or destroy a hard-made tart again…”

Deuce stepped forward, smirking as he held a fist up in the air. “I’ll take ‘em on!”

I stared at them with wide eyes. That part I had not been expecting. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words could come out. These two took every chance they had to surprise me, to remind me that I wasn’t alone. It was a very unlikely friendship, one which high chances of never actually forming, but it did and we were here. They were dumb and reckless and somewhat sweet, and have proven time and again how protective they have gotten over me.

And whether that protectiveness formed because I was a girl, because I was sickly, or because I had no magic, I was unsure, but I was grateful for it nonetheless.

“Y-Yeah…” I finally got out, too stunned to say much else.

I really didn’t deserve them. Ace and Deuce were probably the only _good_ things this awful world has given me. Okay, yeah. You know what? Screw it. We’ve come a long way since the entrance ceremony. A grin spread across my lips and I stood up, planting my hands on the table and leaning forward, meeting Ace’s mischievous gaze with my own.

Holding a fist out towards him, I said, “You better! I’m rooting for you.”

Ace laughed, reaching up and bumping his fist against mine. “Damn straight!”

Suddenly, Grim’s stomach rumbled. Everyone either jumped or snickered at the cat monster, who grumbled and snapped at everyone, complaining that he was hungry after all that talking. It also served as a reminder that it was still lunch time. We had at least ten minutes left before the bell rang, so I checked-out the book I had found and hurried after the group.

I didn’t get very far before Deuce scooped me up in his arms, to which Trey shot us a weird look. I guess he still wasn’t used to me being carried around everywhere. It was kinda strange, and multiple people in the hallways and on the street flashed us judging expressions, but I was starting to get used to it. It actually felt nice being carried like some kind of princess.

I just hated the fact that it was because I was so sickly. I clung awkwardly to one of the lapels of Deuce’s blazer, my other arm draped over the book resting on my stomach, and pretended not to notice the stares. Some students were glaring again.

_“...just got here and has Heartslabyul wrapped around her finger…”_

What? I blinked, wondering if I heard that correctly.

_“Doesn’t even have magic…”_

Wow, okay, yeah. People really don’t like me. I’m just going to pretend they don’t exist now. Oh, look- the cafeteria! Since everyone else had already gotten their lunches, there wasn’t much of a line. We had to stuff our faces quickly, though doing so often left me choking as eating such a great amount at a fast pace left my lungs to get crowded by the food. It still hurt even after getting something to drink, and Ace panicked and smacked me on the back to try and help.

...It only made things worse.

Cater asked what took us so long, complaining about how he had to eat lunch alone since none of us showed up. Apparently he had been expecting us to show up at the table earlier, which was why he chose to sit there, but then we never did. At least, not until late. Trey apologized, informing him of the boys’ plan to taken down Riddle, and Cater practically _shrieked_ his response.

“A-Are you serious!?”

“Yup.” Grim stated bluntly, shoving part of a tuna sandwich in his mouth. “Ayth and Deuth are gonna geh thish shtupid cowar off!”

“M-Mouth… closed.” I wheezed, trying to reach over the table to bop him on the nose. Grim swallowed his food and hissed, leaning away and out of my range. “I will… smack you!”

Trey chuckled, but the worry in his gaze never faded. He was clearly bothered by all of this, especially by what had been said to him earlier by Ace, and was probably wondering how Riddle was going to handle being challenged. I didn’t blame him; I wasn’t even mad at him like the ginger was for not telling the redhead off for his behavior. All hate I felt went towards Riddle’s parents.

More specifically… his mother.

Once lunch was over I told the boys I’d meet them at the dorm. I still wasn’t feeling all that well, especially after eating so quickly, so I wasn’t going to participate in the rest of the classes. Deuce seemed worried, and so did Ace and Grim to a certain extent, but they told me to be careful and headed to class while I left the main building. There wasn’t anyone around this time, so I was able to walk in peace.

Ah, this quiet is so nice…

I yawned and stretched my arms out as best as I could while carrying the book, slumping over with a slight cough as I stumbled. I was exhausted. I almost didn’t think I was going to make it up the hill to Ramshackle Dorm with how tired I felt, the heavy book only weighing me down more. Dropping the book on one of the many mattresses in the blanket fort, I headed upstairs and changed into my ceremonial robes, lazily getting ready for bed before climbing into the fort and pulling the book onto my lap.

There was this strange sensation inside me as I stared at the ancient hardback book. I could feel it bubbling up, a mixture of anxiety and excitement. I might _finally_ learn something about this curse with this book. On the other hand, this could just be another dead end… urgh. No, it’ll be fine.

I took a deep breathe.

_Et Magicae Flores Historiarum._

Leaning against the pillows and forcing myself to relax, plague mask strapped to my face, I nervously flipped through the dusty pages. The book felt heavy on my lap, and as I read the glossary and index I came to the conclusion that this book was about magical flowers specifically, and their histories.

As it turned out a lot were used for potion making, which made me wonder if we would be learning about some in class later on. Others flowers could be used by nature fairies, or even fairies in general, to gran blessings or even make medicine. Some flowers were enchanted, others bloomed only on certain phases of the moon, and one… had been granted power by the sun.

A single drop of sunlight grew a beautiful golden flower, with the magical ability to heal the sick and injured. It remained untouched for centuries, or so it was told, and was only uprooted to heal a heavily pregnant queen who had fallen gravely ill. As a result of drinking the elixir made by using the golden flower, the queen gave birth to healthy little girl- with hair the color of sunshine.

_An actual princess…_

No. No, it was more than that.

 _A lost… princess?_ My head began to ache and I cringed, choking on the bile and blood forcing its way up my throat. _I-It hurts…_

When I tried to continue reading, spots began to dance in my vision; my skull throbbing even worse as my brain wracked itself for knowledge that it knew should be there. I recognized this story- the one about the golden flower. So why… was that memory taken from me too? My brain was prying and clawing at the chains locking my memories away, and it let me coughing and wheezing as tears pricked my eyes.

That girl… that princess had been stolen away. I’m sure of it.

But to where? I can’t… think. I’m going to throw up.

I slammed the book shut, leaning my head with my eyes squeezed shut, pain and anger and bitterness all rushing through me. Just how far was this curse going to go? How much was it going to prevent me from learning and from remembering? I feel so sick. It hurts. I’m scared and I’m dizzy, and I don’t know what to do.

I’m just trying to find a way to learn about what’s wrong with me. Yet… the very thing that’s bothering me is preventing me from doing so. I hated it. It was as if the curse had wrapped safety locks around every possible corner and door, keeping me out from anything that could be the slightest bit helpful.

I gasped, hunching over and digging my fingers into my chest, the book falling off my lap from the movement. The sharp needle-like pains from before felt even stronger now, and I wasn’t unsure if the lump in my throat was the beginning of a sob or another nasty rose. I coughed and spit and resisted the urge to gag, but all I really succeeded in doing was getting some nasty red globs of blood on my sleeve.

Once my throat felt mildly cleared I slumped over, collapsing on my back, chest heaving up-and-down as I struggled for air.

_I’m tired…_

I’m tired, but I don’t want to sleep. Not anymore. What if I have another dangerous dream? I can’t control myself in them; I barely even remember what happens! If I chase the memories anymore, memories that I’m not even sure are mine, then… what will become of me?

I… I’m so close to death; I’m sure of it.

Eyes focused on the red splotches on my black sleeves, I shuddered and inhaled a shaky breath. I then held my hands up, gazing at the scarred palms and knuckles. Just how many dreams will I have… before I can’t even move?

What if... I fall into aneternal slumber? What if _that’s_ the curse? A sleeping death in which I’m forever chasing dreams, wallowing in pain and despair as the thorns only grow, my body decaying slowly in my bed as the outside world continued moving?

 _I don’t want that._ I wheezed and blinked away the tears pricking my tired eyes, staring up at the ceiling with fear in my heart. _The battle with Riddle is supposed to be tomorrow…_

There was no way that was going to go well. I encouraged the boys earlier, but I highly doubted anything would work. Would anyone even be able to calm the redhead down after the match? Will he still be nice to me, despite all that’s happened? Probably not. He said Heartslabyul would be my sanctuary, a shield I could hide behind should things get tough, but there was no way he would allow it now.

I’m not even sure if I would survive until morning. I feel like I’m burning up…

My eyelashes fluttered and I jolted, trying to keep my eyes open. I needed to stay awake as long as possible. Unfortunately, the pain was too much to bear and as the school bell rang, signalling the end of classes for the day, my closed and my head sunk into the pillows, body relaxing into the mattress as if nothing was wrong.

It was so… calm. Like I was drifting in total darkness, no sounds except that of black ink slowly moving by me as thorny vines held me in place. It was almost soothing. I could have remained like that forever, the pain too much for me to truly _feel_ anymore at this point. And I would have too, if I didn’t hear that sound…

That sound of a child crying. The vines wrapped around me tightened and I blinked, groggily opening my eyes and staring into the deep, body suspended by thorns attached to the surface of the inky river. From below I could see him, a little redheaded boy at a desk, choking back a sob with his fingers tangled in his hair, staring at the several huge piles of paper and textbooks in front of him.

This big empty room, barely even lit, was full to the brim with texts and scrolls and endless amounts of what I’m assuming was homework. There wasn’t even a sound to be heard save for the child’s whimpering and the sketching noise of pencil against paper. No parents, no family in the house… just him and his studies.

Why…? Why is he _always_ alone and _always_ hurting!?

My fingers twitched, anger flaring up inside of me, and then I was tugging at the vines, fighting against them and choking on the rose in my mouth as the thorns pricked at my flesh, staining the white clothes I wore red. Spider lilies drifted about the ink around me and I spat, teeth biting at the stem of the rose even as it stabbed the inside of my mouth.

I finally had a way to communicate with the kid, and now the river was trying to cage me again? I don’t think so.

I tugged and pulled and thrashed, and wriggled my body until I was free. Ignoring the bits of thorns that were still tuck to me, I sunk below- deeper into the abyss- down to the area where he was studying. As I was nearing the floor, swimming as well as I was able towards the room, a rock suddenly hit the window. The boy paused and whirled around, visibly confused, his storm grey eyes flickering from the window to his papers.

When it happened again, he turned his head and stared at the glass for a minute. _“Is someone knocking on the window…?”_ When Riddle didn’t answer, another rock was thrown. He stood, making his way over. _“What is going on…?”_

My feet touched what was meant to be ground, and then the dream flickered. I coughed, stumbled over and reaching out to cling to the desk for balance, but my eyes widened in surprise when my hands instead _sunk_ through what was thought to be a solid object. Following the disappearing furniture were the papers and textbooks, and even the boy himself, and a muffled squeak escaped my lips as I struggled to remain upright as the world painted itself green.

Rose hedges suddenly formed and surrounded me, and I pressed a hand to my aching chest. I felt incredibly dizzy. Standing for a few minutes, I waited until I had mostly recovered and started to walk- but I didn’t get very far before the sounds of footsteps reached my ears and a tiny hand snatched my own, a voice crying, _“I found you!”_

The child version of Riddle looked up at me, storm grey eyes full of concern.

_“Are you okay?”_

He had disappeared. He had disappeared, yet reappeared so quickly once the scenery changed. What was with that? I don’t understand. I stared down at him, dumbfounded, wondering what just happened. Lacking a voice to answer his question, I simply nodded- face ashen in color, watching with an aching heart as the boy stared and slumped his shoulders, worrying his bottom lip.

 _“I see.”_ He said, quiet, as if not really believe. His grip on my hand tightened and he looked up at me, storm grey eyes starting to water. _“I... really wish you could talk. Does it hurt? Having the rose in your mouth…”_

I still questioned why he was able to see it. Is it because this is a dream? Is the real Riddle dreaming as well, at this point in time, and that’s why we can meet like this? That scene from before- was it a memory from his past? But if this Riddle, right here in front of me, was a child… why wasn’t he scared? I was covered in blood- both dry and fresh- and it could be easily seen due to the bright white of the clothes I was wearing.

If I saw a strange lady covered in blood and thorns, with a flower poking out of her mouth, I would have been terrified. Even more so if I was younger. Yet this one seemed to be actively looking for me, especially now that he knew I could hear him. Communicate with him. That empty room… was it because of his mother? Was she forcing him to study all that text? To solve all that homework?

The thorns in my throat seemed to react negatively to these thoughts. I started to choke, the taste of iron stronger than ever before, and I coughed, hacking and wheezing as my fingers curled into my chest. Intense pain erupted in my lugs, sharp and prickly and unrelenting, and it felt like I was being strangled from the inside-out.

 _“Wh-What’s wrong!?”_ The boy panicked, watching as I hunched over. _“Is it the rose!?”_

I couldn’t respond. By the time I had finally managed to recover I noticed something strange- a creeping sensation of eyes staring at us from behind. Alarmed, I whirled around to see two boys standing there. They couldn’t been much older than the child beside me, and they had very colorful hair. The weirdest part?

I actually recognized them.

 _“Those are the kids who threw the rocks at my window!”_ Riddle gasped.

They were younger here, but I would recognize Trey and Chen’ya anywhere. It was hard not to with such dark forest green hair, and that big fluffy pink-and-purple striped tail. The cat ears also sort of gave it away. I was actually really surprised to see them though. Why are they here and just staring at us?

Why are they looking at Riddle… with such sad eyes?

Hold up- did they just take off running? What for!? I was so confused. Tightening my grip on the hand clinging to mine, I made a stupid decision and chased after them- not thinking too much about it. All I knew was that I wanted answers, and I only ever seemed to be getting them here. The things in my dreams have been correlating with reality, and if things went bad tomorrow at the decisive match then maybe I would have way to fix it by learning more about what’s here.

Although… I don’t think I actually ever remembered anything once I woke up. Frick. I really am just making things worse, aren’t I?

Riddle and I headed further into the hedge maze, chasing after the two boys, passing by rose trees and bushes. I extended a hand out, trying to call out to them, but the only sound that left my lips was a rasp and a harsh cough.

 _Wait!_ Is what I wanted to say. _Don’t run!_

I watched as Trey beckoned at Cheny’a to follow him, the boys then ducking behind a corner together. Picking up the pace, I dashed through a rose arch- only to pause upon noticing that the world around me suddenly grew much larger, and that the hand I had been holding onto was just… gone. Like it dissipated in my grasp. As I came to a halt, a breeze blew by and I blinked, gazing in horror at the spot the red haired child had once been.

_Riddle…?_

Where did he go? I frowned, looking around worriedly as I came to the conclusion that the other boys were gone as well. Closing my eyes and sighing, I wondered if that was going to be the interaction I had with him before the battle tomorrow, only to jolt my head up in alarm when the sound of a trumpet playing suddenly reached my ears.

When my eyes opened again I was no longer in the hedge maze. No, I was standing behind a low podium, looking on in shock as a white rabbit ran up to the staircase to a podium _far_ taller than my own. The White Rabbit turned around with a deep bow, and proceeded to pull out a long scroll of paper.

 _“Your Majesty!”_ He greeted, and my gaze snapped up- blue eyes wide as I finally took notice of the other person in the room.

She was a large woman, dressed in a gown colored in black-and-red with a ridiculously large white collar propped around her neck. Her thin black hair was tied in a bun, her round face twisted into a childishly grumpy expression, her fat fingers tapping irritably against her desk. Most notably, a crown resided atop her head, her face flushed red with anger.

There was… There was no way this was possible. She was a statue, someone probably long dead. I should have no idea what she should look like outside of stone. But… there was no mistaking it. She… She was…

The Queen of Hearts.

She was the Queen of Hearts, and she was sitting in a throne behind the tallest podium of them all- glaring down at me spitefully. The white rabbit was listing off all sorts of things, actions that were supposedly crimes, despite all being silly in nature. He was accusing me of enticing the queen into a game of croquet, and teasing, tormenting, and otherwise just absolutely annoying her. It was ridiculous.

So why did it make sense? Even her just sitting there, throwing a temper tantrum and yelling at the white rabbit… felt so familiar to me.

 _“Never mind all that!”_ The Queen of Hearts shrieked, slamming her fists on her podium desk. Leaning back, she cleared her throat and curled her hands to her chest, batting her long eyelashes with a sickeningly sweet smile. She waved her fingers at him. _“Get to the part where I lose my temper!”_

The White Rabbit hurriedly moved through the list of offences, nearly dropping the scroll in the process. _“Uh, th-thereby causing the queen to lose her temper!”_ He declared.

The Queen of Hearts giggled. _“Now…”_ She rubbed her hands together, leaning against the podium and glaring down at me maliciously. _“Are you ready for your sentence?”_

This woman was ridiculous.

 _“Sentence?”_ Body moving on its own, a voice that was not mine left my lips. Yet I didn’t falter to pull back, even after two card soldiers held their spears in front of me to prevent my stepping forward. _“But there must be a verdict first!”_

 _“SENTENCE FIRST!”_ The queen roared, slamming her fist down. She then smiled, standing straight and waving her index finger in the air as if to try and make me complacent. _“Verdict afterwards~!”_

I stared at her incredulously. Grabbing at the spreads and attempting to peer up at the queen from below them, only to wind up looking over them by standing on my toes, I exclaimed, _“But that just isn’t the way!”_ This wasn’t how trials were meant to go. There were rules to this sort of thing.

And speaking of rules… I probably could have phrased my sentence better. The Queen of Hearts turned as red as her dress in her fury, the woman banging her fists repeatedly against the desk like a toddler having a temper tantrum. She screamed with so much air that the few strands of hair that dangled in her face went flying upwards and out of her forehead.

_“ALL WAYS ARE-!?”_

_“Your way, Your Majesty!”_ I quickly corrected, grabbing the corners of my blue dress and curtsying to the best as my ability, an undertone of exasperation in my voice.

The Queen of Hearts giggled and relaxed at that, calming down significantly as she sat back in her seat. She nodded at me, smiling with a rather pleased expression, eyelashes fluttering. _“Yes, my child…”_ She said, glad to hear I understood the ways of this mad land.

But then her calmness faded. Her face turned crimson in a matter of seconds, the woman standing and pointing, screaming with rage dark in her eyes.

_“OFF WITH HER-!”_

Oh no. Horror washed over me and every instinct told me to run, yet this body wouldn’t move at all. I had no control over it. This… blonde child I was forced to pretend to be had a mind of her own, and would not let me so much as voice an opinion.

And right when I thought it was all over, certain I was going to be decapitated, the King of Hearts, a tiny little man barely three feet tall, tugged on his wife’s dress to catch her attention. He suggested they bring in witnesses. And I knew, I just _knew_ from the way this body reacted all hell was about to break lose.

Before long the Mad Hatter showed up, the same old man from the tea party, and nothing got solved at all. Why? Because they started _singing_ instead of answering any questions.

For if it isn’t someone’s birthday… it’s clearly their _un_ birthday.

And the Queen of Hearts just _had_ to not have a birthday today.

Oh boy. I groaned, pressing a hand to my face, watching in dread as the cake that the Mad Hatter and March Hare gave her erupted into a present. A present she greedily opened. It was some sort of weird… purple stuffed pillow-looking thing that she decided to set atop her crown, with white pearls decorated across it in the shape of smile.

Wait, no, hold on… that _was_ a smile! The purple thing transformed! It was the Cheshire Cat!

I tried to inform the Queen of Hearts about this, but in doing so the dormouse when crazy. He leapt out of his tea pot in a panic, desperate to escape a mouse’s fate in getting eaten by a cat. The Mad Hatter and March Hare tried to catch him, only in doing so they wound up knocking a curtain onto the queen and walking on her.

When people started shouting and asking for the jar of jam, I grabbed it- as the Mad Hatter had been snacking on it earlier when he first arrived. The March Hare dashed over and scooped up a spoonful, and right as he flung it… the Queen of Hearts had managed to stand up and pull the curtain off of her herself, revealing her face.

Her face which then got covered in purple jam.

And then the King of Hearts, who had been chasing the dormouse with a hammer, ended up accidentally hitting his wife upside the head with it. As the queen flinched and ducked down, the king panicked and tossed the hammer at the March Hare, who handed it to the Mad Hatter, who gave it to me. All the while I was _still_ holding the jar of jam.

Oh frick. Oh no. No, no, no. Where do I put it!? What do I do!?

As the queen tore through the curtain that was knocked back over her when she had been hit, I tossed the items to the side and shoved my hands in my apron pockets. Unfortunately, I was not fast enough- as she saw me moments before I had been able to throw them away. Wait, what _are_ in my pockets? Are these bits of mushroom?

Screw it. I’m half-dead, have no control over this body, and am about to be murdered anyway. Whatever.

As the queen began to shout my death sentence, I quickly stuffed the pieces of shroom in my mouth and chewed, swallowing them. The next thing I knew the room was getting smaller and smaller, and I… was getting bigger? Whoa! Whoa, whoa- _ow!_ That was a ceiling.

I cringed. The card soldiers charged at me then, swinging their spears and stabbing at my ankles, but it hardly felt like more than a light pinch.

 _“Oh, poo; I’m not afraid of you!”_ I knelt down and scooped up a handful of them, gazing at the group of aces and spades in my grasp. _“Why, you’re nothing more than a pack of cards!”_

This was madness. Complete and utter madness.

And I’ve never felt more confident.

Guided as though controlled by puppet strings, I tossed the group of cards in the air, watching with a huff as they all floated towards the ground. The king pulled out a book and began to flip through pages, raising a hand up and pointing at me, panicked and fearful. _“Rule number forty-two: “all persons more than a mile high… must leave the court immediately!””_

I glared upon hearing that, awkwardly placing my hands on my hips. I took up so much space in the room; it was hard to move.

“ _I am NOT a mile high!”_ I stated, and closed my eyes with folded arms. _“And I’m not leaving.”_

Wait. What? Why am I not leaving? I want to leave!

The Queen of Hearts scrambled back to her podium, picking up her crumpled crown and trying to mold it back into shape. _“S-Sorry, but rule forty-two, you know!”_

My body moved forward, leaning down with my large hands grasping at her podium. _“And as for you!”_

The pompous woman picked up the king, holding him in front of her like a shield even though his stature wouldn’t really do much for protection. I stood up as straight as I could, curtsying sarcastically with a harsh tone.

 _“Your Majesty... hmph! “Your Majesty” indeed.”_ During this time I began to notice that I was starting to grow smaller, but my lips wouldn’t stop moving. Something was forcing me to speak- the body I was in having a will of its own. _“Why, you’re not a queen! Y-You’re just a fat, pompous, bad-tempered old ty… tyrant…?”_

The body I was in seemed to notice our smaller size, voice shaking slightly in reaction to the surprise. The Queen of Hearts chuckled malevolently, rubbing her hands together.

 _“And, uh, what were you saying, my dear~?”_ She inquired, fluttering her eyelashes, not all aware of the cat sitting atop her head.

 _“Well, she simply said you’re a fat, pompous, bad-tempered old tyrant!”_ The Cheshire Cat exclaimed, giggling away and kicking his legs before disappearing. _“Ahaha!”_

That was it. This was the end.

_“OOOOOFFFF WITH HER HEEEAAAAD!”_

I watched in horror as the card soldiers all jumped up, spades and clovers and diamonds all coming at me from different directions. I was certain I was going to be killed. But then the world fell apart and I blinked, sitting up with wide eyes, a blanket draped over my legs, my real body burning up as a cold sweat beaded down the sides of my face and down my my neck, my hands shaking as they wrapped around my bruised throat. My ceremonial robes were clinging to my skin.

Ace and Deuce were passed out, dressed in their typical t-shirts and boxers, with Grim fast asleep near my feet. The cat monster only stirred upon my movement, but he quickly went back into dream land. Gods, what… what time is it?

I-I can’t… I can’t breathe. My mask- where did my plague mask go? Did the boys remove it? Were they the ones who placed the blanket on me? It’s hot. I’m burning. I-I need air. I can’t…

I started to choke, and to prevent myself from coughing and waking the boys I struggled to get out from the tangle of blankets, accidentally stepping on Grim’s tail in the process and waking him. He went back to sleep shortly after, though, and I gasped- wheezing as I stumbled out of the fort and towards a wall.

_Ow._

My face collided into it, palms facing outwards, and I staggered to the front door. Air. Fresh air. I-I needed- I needed fresh air! This dorm is too dusty and too molded, and I’m burning up.

I fumbled with the door handle and tripped over the steps walking out, landing roughly on the cold hard ground as the door closed behind me. I didn’t even care that it hurt; the coolness of the dirt felt amazing against my fiery skin, and my exhausted body all but gave up right there. The night time air was rushing into my struggling lungs and I gasped, fingers digging lightly into the dirt as I started to numb.

Everything… was okay now. It was going to be okay. Sure, I could I taste blood on my tongue, but that was fine. Everything is fine.

Gods, this feels so good…

I let out a heavy exhale, ignoring the stabs of pain in my chest. I was alive. Dying, certainly, but alive nonetheless. I didn’t lose my head.

Wait, what’s that sound? I could hear a rustling from the bushes nearby. Footsteps.

Have one of the delinquents from before come to get to their revenge? Maybe it was one of those Heartslabyul students who were glaring at me before? That one student didn’t seem to have any problem shooting magic right at me to get rid of the tart, so maybe they wanted to get rid of the “intruder” at their all-boys school.

Maybe… I should just let them put me out of my misery? Everything hurts, anyway. It would be better to have a swifter, faster death than one that was all drawn out and full of suffering, of not knowing when sweet reprieve would actually come. I was probably never even going to get back home, what at the rate Headmaster Crowley’s lack of research was going. I was trying, but it wasn’t like I was making any progress either.

I’m so tired…

I want to live; I want to live _so_ bad, but there wasn’t really much sense in prolonging the inevitable, was there? I was just causing trouble for everyone here. Ah, but… if I died Grim wouldn’t be able to be a student anymore. Ace and Deuce wouldn’t have anyone to annoy. Ugh, what a pain.

I blinked and slowly opened my eyes when the footsteps came to a halt. I tiredly shifted, wincing and coughing as a result, and looked up to see who it was. If I was going to be murdered, I wanted to at least know who my attacker was. Yet in this bleak darkness, to which my vision had yet to adjust, I could only make out a pair of brightly glowing chartreuse eyes.

They were staring down at me, full of concern and amusement, yet the expression being worn on that beautiful pale face was one of befuddlement; if any emotion could truly be seen at all.

“This wasn’t how I expected you to find me, if I’m being entirely honest.” A sultry voice commented. “Did you come from the abandoned dorm?”

Oh my gods. Mr. Horns glanced up at the building behind me, the front door merely six feet away from where I was laying. I could feel the heat in my face grow stronger, and I found myself loathing the world even more for making this our second meeting.

Even more humiliating was how he was just standing there, acting all nonchalant about me being face-first on the ground, his towering form making me feel even smaller. Like I was some sort of ant. “Is that where you’ve been staying? I did think it was quite odd that there was a female student here in this school…”

I can’t do this. Holy frick.

He’s just talking while I’m laying here, face-first, in the dirt. I either need better taste in men or a whole new life in general, because this is _embarrassing_ as all heck. I winced and slowly started to move, legs not having much strength in them, trying and failing to look nonchalant. In the end all I could was sit there and look up at the tall fae standing before me.

And now that my eyes have adjusted, I could make him out in his entirety.

Whatever breath I had left in me was gone now, taken away in awe by his sheer _beauty._ His pale skin seemed almost iridescent in the moonlight, leaving him to be described in what I wasn’t certain was ghastly or ethereal, but maybe it was both. His eyes seemed even brighter than before in this nighttime darkness, his ebony hair almost appearing to shine blue from the light.

“Whoa…”

I... really can’t ignore this person. The intimidating aura he gave off was completely washed away by his enchanting appearance, and all I could think of in that moment were all the stories I read or heard of about beautiful faeries abducting humans. Of demons and vampires who would use their good looks to lure their victims into a false sense of security and whisk them away.

Whether they were eaten by that supernatural being or forced into marriage depended on the lore, but… I feel like a part of me would be down for either if this man in front of me was the one doing the abducting. Because _holy frick_ just look at him. Just _listen_ to him. I can’t even.

Hearing my whisper, the man paused and looked down, gazing at me. “Hm? Ah, my apologies. Did I startle you? This building has been abandoned for ages, you see, so I’ve been quite fond of it as a place where I could be left quietly alone.” By the end of his sentence is black-colored lips tilted downwards, as if in a pout, and my poor heart stuttered and caught in my throat in response.

How can someone so beautiful be _so damn cute_ , too? Maybe I was still dreaming. A part of me just wants to engrave that adorable image of his pout in my brain forever. I tried to speak, to apologize for _something_ I must have done if he was making that face, but I was too stunned and in pain too make much sense. Half of what even came out was complete gibberish.

“Uh… h-horns… mister…” I blinked a couple of times, trying to force the throbbing headache away. “...person…”

My eyebrows furrowed and I cringed, praying that he didn’t me too weird to be around. I just can’t ever be eloquent around this man, can I? Coughing into my arm, I tiredly looked up at him again- leaning back and craning my neck slightly to meet his gaze. Finally having some sense of self, I raised a finger up and pointed at him, pleased to see him blink those long lashes at me.

“You! Mr. Horns!”

There, I said it. Phew. Man, that was tough.

“Mister… Mr. Horns?” The man echoed, staring as he slowly unfolded his arms, gesturing to himself with wide eyes. He seemed unsure of how to react. “You are… referring to me?”

A lazy grin spread across my face, a surge of confidence I never had before washing over me upon seeing him make such a startled expression. I hummed, beaming at him as brightly as could, pretending that I wasn’t covered in dirt and wearing torn ceremonial robes. “Didn’t… you s-say to… to call you whatever I wanted?”

He stared for a bit longer. After a few seconds his shoulders started to shake and he brought a gloved hand up to his lips, trying to stifle his chuckles as he began to straight-up laugh, the sound beautiful and melodic.

_Oh gods, there goes my heart again._

This man might kill me before the curse does, but in a nice way. A way I would totally being willing to die in. I bit my bottom lip, trying to stop myself from smiling any wider as the joy I felt was starting to make my cheeks hurt, my grin so big from hearing him laugh.

I could even make out the fangs he was trying to hide before in the library, and they were much larger than I had originally thought. Compared to another fae I knew who had more slender looking fangs, these ones were much thicker and could probably tear through even the toughest of hides if a situation required it.

Man, the more I learned or noticed about him the more I wanted to know. Frick. I’m in trouble.

“Ahaha! I-I can’t believe you would call me that…”

The man snickered, struggling to contain himself, stepping closer and kneeling down so we were closer in height. Chartreuse eyes sparkling with mirth, he draped his long fingers over his smiling lips.

“So you wish to refer to me as “Mr. Horns”. Ha! You really do seem to know no fear, little human.”

He hummed.

“Well, no matter. I _was_ the one who told you to call me whatever you like.” The man known as Mr. Horns smirked, and I bit down even harder, face in extreme pain from smiling so much. I must look like such a goof, I swear; the only good thing about all this is that he seemed to be in a much better mood. “Very well. I’ll allow only _you_ to call me by that nickname.”

O-Only me? Oh my gosh. Goodness. Wow, okay. I hate how excited I am over all of this. I feel so giddy. I coughed into my shoulder, heart picking up so much I was starting to get dizzy, and the fever I was certain I had definitely wasn’t helping. This man was making me feel things I’d really like to not feel.

“Y-Yay!” I cheered, voice a bit weak from how breathless I was. I pressed my hands to the sides of my face, not sure if I was purposefully trying to be cute or not, or if I was attempting sarcasm. “I feel special.”

He laughed. “As you should. Ah, but of course…”

Mr. Horns lowered his hand to his chin, eyelashes fluttering almost mischievously.

“I don’t believe you ever gave me your name.”

Oh, yeah. That was a thing. “S-Sorry.”

I coughed into my shoulder again, wincing, the tickle in my throat too strong to bear. I blinked at that gloved hand in front of my face, and looked up to see him still smirking. Was he mimicking my actions from the library? I mean, I’m not complaining. Clearing my throat with a mild expression of pain I tried for a grin, happy at the chance to hold his hand again.

Maybe faes weren’t very good at human interaction? I was starting to think so. But I wasn't either and I myself was a human, so... whatever. Oh, right! My name. 

“It’s…”

I could have imagined it, but fireflies seemed to appear out of nowhere. A gust of wind suddenly picked up as well, cool and relaxing, yet almost ominous at the same time. I watched, completely mesmerized by the way the wind blew against the tall man’s hair, brushing his long dark locks to the side. His chartreuse eyes brightened, as if flickering with magical ability.

“...beautiful. Wait. No. You’re beautiful! Sorry. My name isn’t- I mean, it’s Eleanora Quince! Not beautiful. You’re just beautiful. Wait. Oh gods.” I clamped a hand over my mouth, horrified, the heat in my face growing stronger to the point it was dizzying. I really shouldn’t be allowed to talk. “I’m so sorry….”

The man barked a laugh, amused by my behavior and pleased with the compliments, his fingers wrapping around mine tightly. A spark went up my arm and I jolted, realizing just how close the stranger was. His lips were curled in such a wide smirk his fangs were poking out again, the sight leaving me all tingly and warm and weird.

“Wh-What?” I mumbled, voice muffled by my hand, having never been more embarrassed in my life. “You _are_.”

“And _you_ are a strange little human.” He commented, not at all bothered by this fact. “Compared to me you are no more than a baby, and yet you hold no fear of me. You approach and compliment me, and have not the slightest idea as to who I am. And to top it all off, you have such an unusual name. Why is that, I wonder?”

“Because~ you’re not scary?” I suggested, watching as his eyes lit up again. He appeared to like hearing that. “I mean, intimidating maybe, but that’s just ‘cause I don’t really know you. You’re also super pretty. Have I mentioned that yet?”

“Not nearly enough, I believe.” He smirked.

“O-Okay, cool. Because you are. Pretty, I mean.” I cleared my throat with a wince, awkward. I then waved my free hand at him, praying he didn’t want to run from this conversation as much as I did. “N-Not, like, in a weird way though. Just in a general, uh, a-appreciative way.” It was very distracting, actually. “A-And what do you mean “a baby”? I’m an adult in human years, thank you very much!”

I huffed, turning my head away in a stubborn attempt to appear offended or annoyed. I really wasn’t planning on meeting this person again; I had decided to never go looking for him. These stupid feelings were meant to be squashed before they could grow any stronger, and now… I’m doomed. I am totally and one hundred percent doomed. This is the one kind of trouble I never wanted to be in.

Oh man, I’m shaking so bad right now and I don’t even know what’s causing it anymore.

Did I seriously fall for him at first sight? How does that even work!? The witty comments were merely making me like him more. This is bad. Super bad. And _wow_ he looks really good illuminated by all those fireflies…

No!

Realizing we were still shaking hands, I had to force myself to pull away, swallowing down the lump that was forming as I glanced up at Ramshackle, looking pointedly at everywhere except him. “Y-You said something about… oh. Oh, yeah. Okay. S-Sorry. Um, earlier questions…”

Gods, brain, come on. You’re making me out to be an utter fool in front of this person.

I tugged at my ceremonial sleeves, before massaging the scars on my palms. “I-I live here, yeah. Unfortunately. Ha… eugh.” I lowered my head with a groan. A small cough escaped me. “I-I don’t really… have a home? I was kinda brought here against my will? So… the headmaster stuck me in this place.”

Mr. Horns hummed and folded his arms over his chest, grin falling into a light frown. “I see. So this building is no longer abandoned.” He sighed. “I suppose that means I’ll have to find somewhere else for my nightly strolls…”

“Wait, what?” I whirled around in alarm upon hearing that, brown eyes wide. Legs still lacking any feeling in them, I leaned forward, palms pressing against the dirt as I tried to look up at him. The man looked mildly surprised at my action, though he quickly regained control over his expression and it went back into a somewhat blank, hard to read look. “N-No, no, you don’t… have to do that! Not if you don’t want to!”

Stop it. What am I doing? This is stupid and childish, and… and… as much as I hate it I really wanted to spend more time with this person.

“You… You can still come here…” My voice quivered slightly as the knowledge of my actions caught up to my words, face so warm it nearly burned. My gaze shifted from the ground and to him, and I started to fiddle with my fingers, anxiety spiking up in fear of him rejecting this invitation. “I-It’s just me and a couple of ghosts, and a little cat monster. Granted they all did try to kill me at one point during the few days I’ve been here, but seriously- we don’t make much noise!”

I should not be this desperate. I refuse to be this desperate! This is the perfect opportunity to find a way to _not_ see him again, and yet here I am trying to prevent that! Ugh.

“A-And the people who are in the dorm right now will be going back to Heartslabyul as soon as they’re able! So, like, tomorrow at best. S-So, um…” I felt like such an idiot, worrying my bottom lip as I mumbled quietly, “you can still totally take walks here. But only if you want to. If you _don’t_ want to then by all means find somewhere else, but you can come by! You’re welcome!”

Mr. Horns blinked. “Are you…”

Oh no. No, no, no. Did he figure it out? Please no. I can’t. I’m not emotionally prepared for that confrontation. Please stop. Don’t call me out. I’m scared. Don’t do this. Sir, I am a dying woman in a land full of magic _without_ magic and the means to defend myself. Just let me suffer in peace.

“...inviting me?”

Huh? I wasn’t expecting that. “I-I mean…” I gave an awkward grin, holding my hands up in a uncertain gesture of welcoming. “Basically? The opposite of inviting you to take walks would be telling you to stay away, so… yes? I’m inviting you over? To take walks? But again- only if you want to. Is… Is that okay?”

He didn’t answer. He merely stared at me for a moment, a moment so long I started to get uncomfortable remembering that I was dressed in nothing but shredded ceremonial robes, bed hair, and covered in dirt with the occasional spec of blood. My breath probably smelled awful too considering I just woke up.

_You know what? I take it back. I want to die now._

Ink monster, where are you? Please come kill me. I don’t want to exist anymore.

“Eleanora Quince.” The man suddenly said, and a surge to electricity followed by the aftermath of tingles ran down my spine. I never thought I would like the sound of my name so much. The way he said it just gave _chills_. I loved his voice. I watched as his lips twitched ever-so-slightly upwards, his fingers pressing lightly against his chest. “I accept.”

“...O-Okay.” My voice cracked. “Cool. If you, uh, e-ever want a walking buddy just… just let me know, ‘kay? ‘Kay.” 

I am screaming. I am internally screaming right now; what is wrong with me? I seriously can’t think right now. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT IS DONE! MWAH-LA! Twenty-three pages. XD Phew. I'm gonna go finish that 9 page Inuyasha fanfic comic I'm working on now, lol. 
> 
> BUT ANYWAY! What did you guys think? I hope the dream sequence made sense. I had to use the animatic I made for reference while writing the beginning of it. XD Oof. And more MALLEUS~~~~ also our girl totally just gave him her name, but she was too dizzy to realize and probably won't realize for a hot minute that she did so. But we ended the chapter with Malleus, so guess what that means?? (wink wink) More Malleus in the beginning of next chapter! WOO! Also Ace and Deuce totally put the blanket over El. 
> 
> I kinda imagine them walking in ready to complain about homework and play card games, but find El passed out and Ace/Grim are tempted to wake her up, but Deuce tells them off as he knows she's super stressed and "needs her rest" so he throws on the blanket while Ace removes the mask as sleeping with it on probably isn't comfortable. They good boys. 
> 
> I feel like the Overblot is probably gonna happen at the end of next chapter, and the battle with the beginning of the one after it??? Just guessing based on the way I write things. Some scenes turn out way longer than I expect them to, so. XD I honestly have no idea. 
> 
> But let me know what you think! :3 I can't believe we're over 300 kudos now. O.o Wow. That's incredible. 
> 
> Welp, read and review! Thank you and have a nice/day night wherever you are, and stay safe! <3


	21. A Promise To Meet

He gazed at me, chartreuse eyes intense and filled with a strange sort of curiosity. I tried to steady my breathing, to force myself to calm down, to pretend that I wasn’t having a panic attack and praying that he didn’t figure out any of what I was actually thinking. Because _holy frick_ was I hating every single word that came out of my mouth at the moment.

Of all the things I could keep quiet about, this apparently wasn’t one of them.

I was word vomiting. Gods, this is so bad. I’ve never felt so flustered in my life. My heart was practically body-slamming my ribcage, leaving me dizzier than normal and close to passing out. When the man finally spoke, I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up in anticipation and nervousness, fearful with every breath that he would call me out on my very obvious, and not at all subtle, attraction to him.

“I’ll hold you to that, little human.” He mused. “It is not often others seek my company.”

“A-Alrighty.” I cleared my throat, wincing at the pain in my neck. I was so distracted I completely forgot about my bruises and the very thing that led to me coming outside in the first place. “Um, I-I still think it’s bullcrap that other people are scared of you, but whatever. I’m just weird, I guess.”

I can’t read his expression at all. Face burning hotter, I turned away and looked up at the sky, mildly surprised by how many stars there were.

I think I saw the night sky on my second night here- after me and the boys had gotten back from the headmaster’s office. It was dark and blue and expansive, hardly a cloud in sight, with the moon shining brighter than any other star. Those stars, of course, glimmered all sorts of colors- very unlike what you would see back home, when you _could_ see the stars.

I suppose that only goes to show just how far away I am.

“Maybe… Maybe I’m just desensitized to how scary you supposedly are because of all the crap I’ve been through?” I suggested, earnestly trying to think up an excuse. I spoke more calmly now, voice a bit quieter. Softer, even, as I gazed up at the night sky. “Or… maybe you just aren’t my definition of scary? I’m not even from this world, so… maybe that has something to do with it. Either way…”

Feeling oddly more confident, magically fresh air filling what they could of my swollen lungs, I turned back to face Mr. Horns. Some of the tension relieved itself after that moment I took to admire the scenery. Though tired and more than a little worn, I smiled, feeling genuinely happy to have met this person again despite how much I wanted to avoid him to squash the stupid crush that had formed. I didn’t even really care who knew where I was from anymore. People detested me regardless.

His eyes were wide, something I could only assume was brought on by my confession about my origins, and they only grew wider when I said, “I’m glad I met you.”

A cheeky grin then curled onto my face.

“Even though you’re a jerk who won’t tell me your name.”

Mr. Horns finally seemed to have recollected his composure, expression falling back into one of neutrality, before his charcoal-colored lips curled into a smirk, the man raising a hand up to his chin. “I believe I mentioned that it was for your own benefit? I do not wish to scare away one as… refreshing as you.”

“But you’re _not_ scary.” I rebutted. I scooted closer, legs starting to tingle as some feeling started to return to them. Directly in front of him now, knees almost touching, I curled my hands on my lap and looked up at him, pouting with stern eyes. “And… refreshing? Should I take that as a compliment?”

No one has ever called me that before outside of work. Back then I knew why they said it; I was one of the few employees who actually seemed to enjoy what they were doing. I greeted people with smiles and laughter, and we conversed as I rang up their items. But here?

I was a magicless nobody, cursed with roses and sickness. I could hardly even be myself the majority of the time. I’m constantly in a bad mood, stressed and frustrated, and filled with so much rage, and I had no way to vent out those feelings.

So what was it about this person… that made all those terrible emotions disappear? Why was I able to act more true to myself, despite sounding like a word vomiting fool, around him than the others?

I narrowed my eyes at him, feigning seriousness. “You’re not insulting me, are you?”

Mr. Horns stared at me for a moment, recognizing the way I was using his own words against him- recalling back to when I first remarked on his height. He let out a low chuckle, the sound near sinister in nature if not for the look in his eyes. I could see why people would be intimidated by him, but honestly… it just made me want to be around him more. The dark make-up was really doing things for him, too, and that isn’t even mentioning the pointed ears. I love the goth aesthetic he has going on.

“You may take it however you wish.” The man said, heavily amused by this entire conversation. “If I may ask, what did you mean earlier about being from another world? Would you care to explain, little human?”

Ah, yes. Call me that again. Remind me of how incredibly powerful and immortal you are compared to my measly human self. I hesitated, looking at him and then fiddling with the ground.

“It’s… a long story.” I said, knowing full well that if I started talking I wasn’t going to stop. “You know how I don’t have magic, right?”

“No, I do not.”

Maybe I should start keeping a tally of how many times I’ve surprised this man, because his eyes just went wide again.

”You truly hold no magic?”

“Um, no. Nope. No magic. I, uh, didn’t even know magic existed until recently. It doesn’t exist where I’m from.” I looked at him curiously, a little befuddled as to how he hadn’t heard of me yet. Practically everyone in the school seemed to be aware of who I was, if their whispers and glares were any indication of that. “You… really haven’t heard of me? Like, at all? I’m pretty much infamous.”

The man frowned and shook his head, folding his arms over his chest as he shifted into a more comfortable sitting position. “I’m afraid I do not keep up with the school gossip.”

“Oh…” I wasn’t expecting that. The irony of the situation hit me then and, ignoring all the pain I felt and the soreness of my throat, a grin curled onto my lips and I began struggling to hide my laughter, eyes squeezing shut as I leaned over, shoulders shaking. “W-Wait, seriously? Y-You don’t- _I don’t-_ pfft!”

Mr. Horns, sadly, did not seem to recognize the humor of this situation. In fact, he only seemed to become annoyed. His eyebrows furrowed and his frown deepened ever-so-slightly. Arms folding over his chest, he gazed at me with a miffed expression. “You find something entertaining, little human?”

“N-No, well, yes, I just-” I waved a hand, cringing and curling a hand up to my bruised throat. Between the hurt and all my laughter, tears were starting to form in my eyes. Something about this conversation was making me feel lighter, like the weight on my shoulders was starting to fade a little. “I’m sorry, I-I’m so sorry, but- _you don’t know me._ I don’t know you! I-Isn’t that…”

I coughed, the taste of blood on my tongue coming back as I started to wheeze. His eyes flashed as understanding dawned on him, the man staring at I forced myself to point at him, still wearing that stupid smile.

“Isn’t that hilarious?”

Taking a moment to consider it, his miffed expression softened into something more indifferent, though if I looked close enough I could see the corner of his charcoal-colored lips tilting up in a small smirk again. “...I suppose it is. We are both ignorant of the others status. Truly, as you said before, we are but strangers to each other.”

Gods, can he talk anymore elegantly? My poor heart is ready to faint. Ignoring the feel of what could only be a petal in my throat, I snapped my fingers. “R… Right! It’s great. And you know what else is great?”

He stared, waiting for an explanation.

Feeling like a total buffoon, and certainly looking like one too, I pressed an index finger to my cheek, beaming. “That means we have something in common! Kind of. Not really.” I lowered my hand to my lap as I continued, the excitement in my voice dulling to something more deadpan. Then I brightened again. “But back to your question! No magic. Uh…”

I wondered how to explain.

“Um… yeah. It’s… weird. Super weird. The only reason why I’m a student here at all is because I have nowhere else to go. The headmaster thinks I have a rare talent for beast taming despite my… magicless self, but… I’m pretty sure those “beasts” are just the students who are too stubborn to work together.” I made a face, sticking out my tongue. “I mean, he isn’t even helping me find a way home like he promised! He’s either purposefully avoiding it so he can keep me around as a freaking baby sitter, or too lazy. Last time I asked he had completely forgotten!”

The sensation of tears was growing stronger, and at this point I wasn’t sure if it was my frustration and pent-up anger causing it, or simply from the thorns in my lungs. Mr. Horns watched silently as I started to pick at the dead grass on the ground, my teeth worrying my bottom lip as I thought about the last conversation I had with Headmaster Crowley. As I thought about my family.

My voice went quiet as I spoke, just barely loud enough for him to hear. “Chances are I… I’m gonna be stuck in this world forever. And to top it all off I got freaking _cursed_ on my first day here.”

I was fully aware that I was sulking, and I also knew that complaining wasn’t going to solve anything, but I was scared. So much has gone wrong and I’ve barely had time to process it. It was one thing after another since coming to this place. I was terrified. And the worst part is…

“I don’t even know why.” The dead grass got plucked from the ground, falling between my fingers as my vision grew misty, hands shaking as my words grew more aggressive. “I-I don’t know what I did other than just _exist_ to make someone curse me, o-or even who that someone is! I just…”

I just want answers. Reasons. Some sort of clarity for my situation.

Inhaling deeply and blinking away the waterworks, I cleared my throat and coughed harshly into my sleeve, the sound wet and gross. There, as expected, clinging to the dirtied black fabric, was a single white petal stained red. Lovely. I scrunched my nose up, jaw tightening as my breathing grew worse, the need to have to a total breakdown growing stronger.

But I fought it, and instead grabbed the petal, holding in my left palm for the mysterious fae to see, my expression solemn and grave. “I just want to know.” I finally said, voice soft, my eyes half-lidded as I gazed at the piece of flora. “I just want to know why someone wants me dead, and if… if I’ll even last long enough to get back home.”

Before I understood what was happening it was all rushing out, my lack of a filter around this person and the overwhelming urge to _vent_ leaving my true feelings exposed.

“My- _My family_ is in another _world_ ,the only friends I have a-are all several years younger than me, _literal_ _teenagers_ , and they’re my only means of defense in this place!” My voice cracked, hair falling into my face as I shook my head, eyebrows furrowing so much it hurt. My skull began to throb as the sob caught up, and it made speaking even more difficult than what it already was. “I can’t do anything on my own. I-I have no magic, and… and I was already sickly before the curse, but now…”

I hate it. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it! My eyes squeezed tightly shut and I choked, hands rising up as I tangled my fingers into my hair, hiding my hideous expression from him. I hated everything about this world. About what it’s making me become. I was never the kind of person who cried in front of stranger before. I never even cried in front of my family. I hated it.

I hated this.

This world has turned me into nothing more than a sack of flesh who needs to be carried around and doted on constantly. I’ve always hated who I was, always hated what my asthma had caused me to be, but it was even worse now. I felt like I was going to go insane at this rate.

“It’s worse.”

I pressed my palms to my burning eyes, hoping some pressure would alleviate the sting, bloodied rose petal forgotten on the ground. I sniffled and choked, coughing painfully into my arms as I hid my face from view.

“It’s _so much_ worse.”

I have to rely on everyone I come across for survival. Survival that’s merely momentary and fleeting, giving me a false sense of security as the knowledge of the curse creeping up on me lingered in the back of my mind. Lips curling back, I forcibly wiped the tears away, running my fingers through my hair and brushing back my bangs, hiccupping painfully.

“I-I don’t… I honestly don’t know what to do. I-I-I have _nothing_ to my name here, not- not even god damn _clothes._ E-Everything was left behind when the school…” I had to force myself to pause, growing heavily dizzy. “When the school kidnapped me a-and tossed me into that… that stupid coffin gate thing that brought me here.”

I was so freaking mad. I was boiling with rage and had no way to direct it outwards. I think I was crying more out of anger than self-pity at this point. I dug my fingers into my robes, right beneath my collarbones, knuckles turning white as I glared at the ground, uncaring that I could hardly see.

“The mirror can’t- the mirror can’t even send me home! We tried, but it… it doesn’t work. And now I have to live here for who-knows-how-long, go to a… go to a college I don’t even want to attend, and wear what’s _supposed_ to be a ceremonial uniform as pajamas because all I have is that and a freaking school uniform, and this is so completely ruined it’s hardly even _ceremonial_ anymore!”

I was gasping by the time I had finished ranting, coughing and wheezing and hunching over, fingers digging harder into my chest to try and distract from the pain physically inside of it, the taste of blood and roses growing only stronger.

“I-I just… I just want to go home.” I finished, unable to look at the person I had poured my soul out to. This really was the worst possible way for us to meet a second time. He probably thought I was annoying, that I complained too much and that I should just get over it all. But I can’t. “A-And… And I’m _sorry._ Y-You shouldn’t have to listen to this, I-I shouldn’t even be… even be telling you this. I don’t know _why_ I’m telling you this, I just…” 

I bit down hard on my bottom lip.

“I’m scared.” Taking a shaky breath, I forced myself to raise my head, meeting his gaze for the first time since I started sobbing. “I’m scared of _so much_ that’s happening, a-and I honestly think that’s why I’m not scared of you.”

It was suffocating. Terrifying. Yet just waiting to see his reaction was worse. Then, after what felt like an eternity, he pulled his bright chartreuse eyes away and closed them, turning his head and looking up at the sky. “I can’t say I am pleased with those circumstances being the reason behind our acquaintance.”

“I know.” I hiccuped. “I-I’m sorry.”

He then turned back towards me, calm and not at all appearing perturbed by my meltdown. “But nonetheless… it is an acquaintance I will remember. You mentioned the entrance ceremony? I was not there, so tell me everything that occurred.”

Sniffling, wiping away some of the remaining tears and struggling to catch my breath, I looking at him with big eyes. “Wh… What? Really?” That was a surprise. “I-It’s a lot. And even more happened after the ceremony _because_ of what happened during it, s-so…”

“That is fine.” He closed his eyes, hands folding elegantly in his lap. When he looked at me again, he had this sort of regal air about him- almost humbling if not overpowering due to his tall stature and the sheer magic I could feel radiating off of him. “I could not call myself… who I am… if I can not even listen to the woes of a troubled human.”

“...Mr. Horns, you mean?” I tried to joke, seeing how the man was clearly avoiding giving me any information about himself.

He saw this and blinked, that same smirk from the library curling onto his face. The man chuckled, raising a hand up to his chin, dark eyelashes fluttering at me and causing my heart to skip again. “Precisely. I’m glad you understand.”

Okay, okay. I see how it is. I swear this person either knows exactly what he’s doing or is just completely oblivious to his own charm. Considering his point of view towards himself, it was probably the latter.

I sniffled, the small amount of banter helping to put me in a slightly better mood, a weak smile playing on my lips. I gave a weak giggle, wiping away the few remaining tears and brushing the bangs out of my face.

He won this round.

“Thank you.” I told him, genuinely grateful.

Mr. Horns had every right to be annoyed. To get mad at me. Back at the cafeteria, Ace had even gotten frustrated with me, though looking back on it I’m not sure if that was because I kicked his leg or not. I was such a mess back then it made it hard to remember. Oh gosh, how much would I even remember of this whole conversation? Ah, well, at least I feel somewhat better now.

The fae stared at me for a minute after I expressed my gratitude, something unreadable in his gaze, and as he did so I leaned back and gripped my ankles, thinking of the best way to start the story. Then I sat up, clapping my hands and beaming. “So! It all started when I had gotten home from work…”

Mr. Horns listened very intently to my story. He was even more patient when I had to pause to cough or to catch my breath. The fact that he could see the rose probably had a lot to do with it, or maybe it was because he was immortal and was used to such things. The concept of time could mean very little to him. Regardless, I informed him of everything. When I informed him of how I got the scars, he observed them with intrigue, as if imagining the way they had occurred based on what I told him.

I even mentioned the Dwarfs’ Mines, and how he might find the abandoned little cottage my friends and I found quite nice to walk around if he enjoyed abandoned places as much as he made it sound like he did. He was actually a little surprised by my suggestion- considering how I acted earlier about him finding somewhere else to walk, I guess it made sense. His expression became a little more serious and grim when I brought up the ink monster we fought.

“Overblot…” I heard him murmur thoughtfully, the man tapping his fingers to his chin. He knitted his eyebrows together and frowned deeply. “Perhaps… no. Ah, my apologies, child of man.” He quickly redirected his attention upon seeing my curious stare. “You were saying?”

“What’s an Overblot?” I asked, already distracted by the unfamiliar term.

“Nothing you should concern yourself with.” He readily informed, not at all satisfying my curiosity. I slumped my shoulders in a dramatic gesture and pouted. Mr. Horns chuckled. “You need not worry yourself over something pertaining only to magicians. From the sounds of your story you will be staying at this school for quite some time, and the chances of you encountering another Overblot are quite low. Please, continue with your tale.”

I huffed, blowing a raspberry at him. “Rude.”

He raised an eyebrow at that.

Straightening my back, I pretended to be offended as I turned my head away. “But fine. I’ll be nice and continue. Lucky for you, I happen to love the sound of my own voice.”

Although I would much prefer to talk without a rasp, or the pain that came with it. But if it meant keeping this person with me just a little longer with the chance to learn something about him, despite how hard he was clearly trying to prevent that from happening, I would talk until I couldn’t anymore.

“Anyway! As I was saying, the guys totally left me for dead before gaining a conscience and running back. Only after I nearly got impaled though. Not having magic _really_ sucks.”

I informed him of how stubborn the teens were, and how when they finally decided to cooperate they had put me in charge of the situation, entrusting me with their lives. _Oh._ My brain came to a momentary halt, having not caught on to that before. I fumbled a little in my story telling after that, and almost startled again when I got to the hedge maze and how a certain strawberry blond came after us.

They all had looked to me for help again. I was asked for orders. Why?

Because… I was the adult? The oldest of the group? Why did they look to me for advice, for guidance on how to escape or survive, when I was the weakest of us? I was still a little surprised by how Ace had come to me for help directly after getting his magic sealed. Out of anyone else, of all the friends he probably had in this college, he came to me.

He trusted _me_ to help him.

I still didn’t understand it. I still felt like I did little more than act as emotional support. But… maybe I can learn how to start accepting this kind of role. I was always the one people turned to for relationship advice back in high school, despite my never having been in a relationship myself. Heck, I was the mediator when people fought.

I just didn’t handle confrontation well myself.

Being forced into this situation… weak and cursed and magicless… maybe the best thing I can do for these teenagers around me, the people I call friends, is to keep them on a decent path. I hated seeing the way Deuce beat up those delinquent jerks, and I hated even more the thought of how he apparently used to be just like them, but he was trying to better.

And that… was what mattered, right?

Teenagers were teenagers, and as such were bound to get into trouble, but I was here. I’m the supervisor. I might get dragged into their trouble, but we’re in that trouble together and I can keep them from going too far. I can keep them away from the darkness. I can keep Riddle from… 

I went silent all of a sudden, eyes growing wide as realization hit me. “The Queen of Hearts.”

Mr. Horns paused, confusion evident by the way he stared.

A throbbing began to start up in my skull again and I cringed, bringing a hand up to my forehead. “I… I remember. The dreams, they… involved the queen. Riddle. He’s… becoming the queen? No. Yes?” I cringed, teeth grinding together as I placed a palm against the ground for balance. “Who dares to taint with vulgar paint… no. No, that’s not it. Her head? His head. Off with their heads.”

Who’s head?

“Rule forty-two. Forty-two? A very merry unbirthday to you…”

Before I knew it I was hunching over again, head held with both hands, sirens ringing in my ears as bile bubbled up the back of my throat. So much was going through my brain, struggling to piece together what was wrong. What was missing. I was trying to link together this chain of memories, but so many were out of place. They didn’t want to come together.

The curse was the cause of that. It was right there, too. I can almost see it.

A little hand… grasping onto mine tightly.

And a grin so wide it seemed to split the face of a cat.

Suddenly, the sirens stopped. Though stunned by my realization, by this breakthrough, I was able to make out my surroundings again. I became aware of the man beside me, who had shifted to his knee, halfway standing, a hand partially extended towards my shoulder as if in preparation of steadying me if I threatened to fall over. I gazed at him, staring at the fae almost as though I was in disbelief that he was real.

“I remember.”

His eyes widened at that. Then they narrowed considerably, like he was gauging how much more the thorns had grown. “You’ve been chasing the dreams.” It was accusatory. A statement and not a question. “You’ll forfeit your own life, child of man.”

I flashed him a smile, almost mad in the way my eyes lit up. “I _remember_.” I was ecstatic. Euphoric, even. I shook my head, shoulders shaking as I began to laugh, tired and exhausted and drained. Sitting up on my knees, I ran my fingers through my hair, brushing my bangs back. “I think I know what to do. I know how to talk to Riddle!”

“Rosehearts?” He inquired, despite being well aware that was the only person I could have been talking about. “What does he have to do with the dreams?”

“No, no, no.” I shook my head, waving that off. I looked at him, beaming. “Don’t you get it? He’s the _link._ The similarities are so obvious! In chasing Riddle, I chased the _dreams._ I followed them into an abyss of memories, sinking deeper and deeper until they weren’t even mine!” I was absolutely floored by this discovery. “Lilia was right!”

“...Lilia?”

“Yeah. He’s...” A sigh escaped my lips. “He’s the one who told me about my curse. He’s in Diasomnia, too.” I looked up, brown eyes meeting bright chartreuse. “He’s the fae I mentioned before?”

Mr. Horns curled his fingers close to his lips. “Is that so?”

I nodded. I was beginning to feel a lot better after getting all of that off my chest, the weight of stress oozing away now that I had someone I could actually share it with. I hated seeking help, of confiding in others, but this was just way too much to handle on my own.

Damn. I actually admitted it.

I smiled slightly, despite how tired I felt. “Yeah! He’s… super nice. Really mischievous though. Kinda wished I met you earlier, ‘cause then you could’ve sat with us and seen how he jump-scared everyone at lunch the other day. Trey’s glasses almost fell off his face.”

I snickered.

“It was hilarious. Oh, I have a question!” Mr. Horns hummed, watching as I pointed at the dark green points on the top of his head. “Are there different kinds of faeries? Lilia doesn’t have horns, but you do. Or are the horns just, like… symbolic for something? Is it a magic thing?”

His eyes widened for a moment. After a few seconds of his shoulders shaking the man started to laugh, my lack of knowledge and overall nonexistent fear towards him doing wonders to entertain him. A part of me felt like I should be annoyed, but I was honestly too happy to care.

Mr. Horns’ laughter died down into a small chuckle, the man clearing his throat with a hand to his chest. His movements were small, if not subtle, yet all held a sort of elegance not often found in other people.

“You truly must not be from this world,” He mused, “what with being so bold as to ask questions such as these. I will forgive you for your ignorance, little human, and I will sate your curiosity.”

His chartreuse eyes met mine and I waited anxiously for his response.

“I am known as a dragon faerie. A fearsome creature- one whom many fear. Whether it be my power or my appearance, most cower before me. They shrivel back in fright upon hearing my very _name_.” His lips curled into a small smirk, though there was something almost… sad in his collected gaze. “Will you be the same, I wonder, should you ever learn who I truly am? When you learn what the power behind that name means?”

Honestly? Probably not. “Unless you decide to try and kill me, I think we’ll be good. But I’ve also befriended every other person here who has tried to kill me- save for that one dorm leader- so… you know.”

I closed my eyes and flashed him a bright smile, practically beaming with excitement. My voice was seriously hoarse by this point, but I kept pushing myself.

“We’d totally still be friends. I-If you want to be friends, I mean.” I hurriedly corrected myself, realizing how far ahead I was getting. I need to stop and rewind, and calm the frick down. “Like- I definitely want to be friends with you; I think you’re really interesting a-and, um,” I scratched the back of my head, ruffling my hair slightly, “I-I would… like to know more about you? B-But I’d totally get it if you don’t want to be friends with me.”

We mostly just spoke about me, and all I wanted to do was learn about him.   
  


“...You truly are a strange little human, aren’t you?” His voice was oddly soft yet sorrowful, but curious all the same.

I tensed at his words, face flaring up with warmth once more. I bit down on my trembling bottom lip, feeling the embarrassment start to surge up again. It was hard to read his expression and figure out what he was thinking. He tapped a finger to his chin, appearing deep in thought as he stared down at me.

“I… I guess?” I stammered, hesitant to speak as I became unsure of how to respond. I became all too aware of how I had accidentally made him bear witness to a breakdown about ten minutes ago. “Is… Is that… a bad thing?”

“Not at all.” He answered. ”I’m finding your idiosyncrasies most interesting.”

“O-Oh.” This dude was definitely an immortal. You can tell just by the way he phrases certain things. He was probably bored or something, which was why he found me so entertaining. I wasn’t too sure how I felt about that, but at least he didn’t want to avoid me. Especially after how I cried in front of him. “Well, uh, I hope they’re _good_ idiosyncrasies that I… have.”

I watched as Mr. Horns laughed. “Indeed. You make for a unique conversation partner, child of man, and a most amusing story-teller.”

The man started to stand, and I watched as he extended a gloved hand out towards me. Was he trying to help me up? He seemed arrogant, if not a bit cheeky, but my previous impression of him being somewhat nice wasn’t wrong either. I stared, completely dumbstruck as his lips tilted upwards into a smirk.

“You must regale me with the tale of how the decisive match ends.”

“Uh, y-yeah.” I awkwardly took his hand, ignoring the annoying thump of my heart, and struggled to stand. My legs were still halfway asleep. I wobbled slightly, holding onto his hand a bit longer than necessary to regain some balance and to stand in a way that would allow me to _not_ fall over. “Thank you. Will do.”

Now that we were both standing, I was once again reminded of the incredible height difference between us.

“So… does… does that mean you’ll be coming back again?” I asked, sounding a bit _too_ hopeful for my liking. He watched as I held his hand with both of my own, looking up at him with expectant eyes. “You’ll keep taking walks here?”

His bright eyes flashed with something I couldn’t identify. “Yes. In fact... I’ll return here tomorrow night. I trust you’ll wait for me?”

Oh my gods. This is happening. He was actually going to come over and hang out with me after hours tomorrow.

Butterflies flapped in my stomach and I found myself putting all my weight onto my toes as I straightened, a smile so wide it hurt starting to form on my face. I stumbled over my words at first, holding his hand in my own like it was some kind of… of… _blessing_. I really hated how eager I was at the prospect of spending more time with him.

I hated how I let myself talk him into coming over again.

I hated how this world deemed it necessary for the headmaster to place me in the one building that this man liked to take a stroll around in the middle of the night like some abandoned building maniac. He could be a creep, or a jerk, or someone I should really be avoiding, because honestly a girl in an all-boys school was bad enough and sent enough warning bells throughout my brain on a daily basis, but I was so freaking enchanted by this stranger that all caution was thrown to the wind.

One conversation. That was all it took for me to fall recklessly head-over-heels for him.

Two conversations. That was the amount of time I’ve spent with this man and, despite knowing I shouldn’t, I kept coming up with reasons and excuses to try and convince him to keep taking walks here. Why? So I could spend more time with him. So I could learn more about him.

And tomorrow… tomorrow will be three conversations. I dreaded to think of what effect he’ll have on me then, and how that’ll cause me to act.

Maybe- with any luck- these feelings will go away naturally. After I spend enough time with him they’ll just disappear. I’ll learn that we have absolutely nothing in common, we don’t really get along all that well, and he’s not as charming as I thought he was. I’ll even be able to act normally around him instead of like this… this _doofus_ I keep behaving as.

But as I held his hand in my mine, staring up at him with big sparkling brown eyes, and a smile so wide I was practically bubbling with excitement, I had the worst feeling that was not going to be the case.

“Y-Yeah!” I stammered, nodding my head, praying that I sounded nonchalant despite knowing I looked very much the opposite. “Of course! I’ll, uh… see you then, Mr. Horns.”

Please tell me my voice didn’t just crack. Ugh, this is so embarrassing. I hate myself.

He let out another low chuckle at the sound of his new nickname, and gently placed his free hand over my own. “I will see you then, _Eleanora Quince.”_

At my name the wind around us suddenly picked up. His chartreuse eyes brightened considerably, almost turning acidic green in color, and the amount of fireflies around us seemed to have increased- spinning around him like a whirlwind. His charcoal-colored lips curled further upwards and broadened his smirk, and in a flash of sparks and light he was gone, the fireflies going with him.

I was left standing there alone in the dark, heart racing, face a dark shade of red, and my legs on the verge of giving out. I remained frozen in that pose for a few moments, processing what just happened. Finally snapping out my stupor, I stumbled sideways and staggered back, collapsing onto the steps of the front door, breathing heavily.

“H-Holy frick…” I coughed, wincing at the pain and bringing a hand up to my exposed throat. “I… I…”

I don’t even know what I just did. Did I just make plans to hang out with a guy who’s name I don’t even know? Holy frick. Wait- no. Calm down. He just finds me amusing. Entertaining. I’m an alien with no magic, who has a super large target painted on her back. He probably doesn’t even really intend to be friends with me.

But… But…

I held my hands up to my face, heavily resisting the urge to squeal as my lips curled back and eyes squeezed shut. Ugh, just what am I doing? I’ve never acted like this before, even when I did crush on other people back home! Was it because he wasn’t human? Faes were typically a magical being you wanted to avoid in mythology, and this one happened to be nearly seven feet tall.

Tall and witty and pretty and….

I lowered my hands and laced them together, biting my lower lip as I recalled the way I held his hand. His much larger, slender hand. I still can’t get over the way it felt, or how wonderful his voice sounded. It was the most beautiful voice I ever heard.

Oh my gods, I need to leave. I need to get out of this world.

I need to go home.

I am in _deep_ trouble, and I don’t think there’s anyway for me to get out of it. Frick.

Okay, just breathe. Calm down. It’s fine. I’m fine. Everything is going to be fine. I don’t deal with relationships, especially relationships with people from other worlds, so even if I am a flustered mess around him it doesn’t mean I’m going to do anything. It isn’t like he’ll ever feel the same either. I probably screwed up whatever chances I had with that breakdown anyway. These feelings will just stay under lock-and-key. Even if… I’m not the best at hiding them…

Dear _gods_ please don’t let anyone find out about this.

Whatever higher beings exist in this world, please let Mr. Horns be oblivious. Please don’t let him understand these stupid emotions. Of all the danger I’ve gotten in, I don’t think this is something I could survive. Rejection was a thing I never handled well.

...Oh, who am I kidding? I have the worst luck in the freaking universe.

I mean, who else gets _isekai’d_ into another dimension? No one, that’s what. It wasn’t even a cool anime dimension hop either; at least those protagonists got superpowers of some kind. Instead I get stuck with a curse and a dusty old building that’ll probably collapse during some stormy weather. I’m hardly even protagonist-material. I’m more like… that weird side character people are just stuck with.

Ugh.

You know what? I’m not going to think about this any longer. I’m going to head back inside, lie down, and go to sleep.

I stood up, coughing and wheezing, having exhausted my already aching lungs during that entire encounter, and I opened the creaky front door. Nobody stirred or made a sound- well, except for Deuce’s snoring. It was only occasional, but he’d let out a little snort and roll over before falling back into a soundless sleep. Ace had his stomach out, hand under his shirt against his chest, the boy laying upside down with his feet next to Grim’s face.

It was kinda funny.

 _These idiots…_ I let out a small sigh, but I couldn’t deny the affectionate smile I was wearing. _I really don’t deserve you all._

They’re the real protagonists here, always saving me and helping me. I wish there was more I could do to repay them. I’m always stuck in the same position, unable to do more than stand by them when they do something stupid, or go with them to apologize to someone, or act as moral support during the decisive match that would be taking place tomorrow. I feel so awful.

I can only hope I’ll be able to do more by acting as the supervisor the headmaster appointed me as.

Climbing into the fort and crawling over several pillows, avoiding any limbs or tails, I collapsed next to Deuce. There was no clock ticking, no whispering of the ghosts, but I could hear the breathing of my new friends. The shifting of their bodies against the many mattresses as they cuddled with their blankets or pillows.

Grim surprised me by mumbling in his sleep and curling up to my side, as if seeking warmth from the presence that had temporarily disappeared. “Human…”

I blinked, staring at him with big eyes, before carefully raising a hand up and petting him. He snuggled in close, leaning into the touch, and I found myself selfishly wondering if the cat monster cared more about me than he’d like to admit. I coughed into my shoulder, cringing at the pain, and struggled to relax into the mattress.

I felt… less stressed than normal, a lot of the pressure having evaporated during my chat with Mr. Horns when he let me tell him everything that happened. And now, being surrounded by these highly unlikely friends, I… felt safe. I was haunted by a curse, and danger has been following me everywhere, but this?

This was nice. I was okay with this.

I just wish a certain dragon fae would get out of my mind and let me sleep. I turned to my side, wrapping an arm around Grim, hand barely brushing Deuce’s shoulder as Ace rolled onto his back, his left leg landing on my right foot. This was going to be a long night, but tomorrow was going to be even longer. I wasn’t going to be able to rest until tomorrow night passes by.

My lips curled up into a dumb grin, eyes closed as I snuggled with a pillow.

As much as I didn’t want to admit or acknowledge it, I was really looking forward to talking with Mr. Horns again. I was also really happy that I was the only one “allowed” to call him by such a silly nickname. I do wish I knew his real name, but he clearly didn’t want me to find out because of some deep-rooted belief I would be terrified of him.

I could feel another squeal trying to build up and I buried my face into my arm, trying to will the red on my cheeks to go away. I know it was only because he was a bored immortal fae, but I felt so happy that he wanted to talk to me again. I was practically tingling with excitement, and simultaneously cursing the world as dread pooled in my stomach. My anxiety was going to be on edge all day now.

Frick.

Uuugh, I’m not going to be able to sleep at this rate. Although, that isn’t necessarily a _bad_ thing considering that meant less of a chance of me spreading the curse. But… I do need to finish reading that book… crap. This is a dilemma. Which is worse? Which causes it to spread faster?

Do I sleep and dream myself to near death, or do I read in hopes I can find a way to break the curse only to make myself throw up bloody petals? Both are really bad. I scowled, squinting in the darkness and reaching a hand out to pick up the book that had been discarded earlier. I squinted in the darkness, holding the book close to my face as I flipped through the pages. I skipped by the golden flower, instead heading straight to the part about roses.

Roses… yes. I was getting a little sick of that specific flower.

The reason was fairly obvious.

Eyes adjusting, I held the book even closer to my face and read the words as best as I could. A rose put under an enchantment- made to wither slowly over time. I must have recognized that one as well, for my skull began to throb. Damn. I was beginning to believe that the majority of the stories in this book had something to do with my missing memories, because _wow_ was my curse acting up.

I ended up having to move to the bathroom, not wanting to wake any of the boys up with my coughing. There I was able to actually read _with_ light, turning on the switch and burrowing against the door, hacking into my sleeve as I read. I had to resort to holding some ancient unused toilet paper to my mouth, spitting blood into it whenever I coughed. Following it were a few petals, those of which left me disoriented and dazed as they tried to remain stuck inside my throat.

I can… do this. There has to be a hint in here.

I don’t care how dizzy or ill it makes me, just one story… has to have something do with what’s happening right now. The rose I was reading about now was also involved in a curse, though aside from that it had little in common with my own. If the prince who was cursed couldn’t find love and learn to be loved in return, he would remain a monster forever. A beast. That rose was literally connected to his lifeline as a human.

But me…?

I suppose they were the same in that sense, as given enough time the roses in my lungs would eventually kill me. Breathing was harder than ever- like each inhale was accompanied with the stabbing needle-like pain of its forever growing thorns. Reading the details of his curse made me wonder what the details were in order to break the one I have, and if it was possible at all.

When I got too dizzy to read anymore I closed the book and slumped against the door, wheezing and coughing up a storm. Some blood dripped down my chin, but I was too tired to wipe it up or even move my arms. I think I must have dozed off at sometime, because when I closed my eyes and opened them again the book had fallen off my lap and the lights were turned off.

Did the ghosts do that? I didn’t really care to find out, instead groaning in pain as I tried to sit up, grabbing onto the ledge of the sink and standing. I spat out whatever blood had bubbled up and washed it down the sink, and brushed my teeth to get rid of the taste. Ow…

My head won’t stop throbbing. I picked up the book and staggered out the bathroom, heading back downstairs to the lounge and passing out on the many mattresses next to Ace. I fell asleep almost immediately, but spent the majority of the night tossing and turning, coughing every now-and-then when my lungs of throat got rather agitated, the pain waking me up. Whenever I did actually sleep, there weren’t many dreams.

At least, not dreams involving the curse. That made me worry a little bit, as I knew they involved Riddle.

And if I wasn’t dreaming of the curse, then… was he not dreaming either?

Is he even asleep?

When morning finally came I didn’t stir at all, even as Deuce shook me by the shoulder and called out my name. The headmaster had showed up at the front door, grinning and beaming and overall acting _way_ too cheery for morning, his loud voice actually being what woke me up.

He told us the match would take place around three, which on a normal day would be an hour after classes have ended, but since it was currently the weekend we didn’t have to worry about that. Headmaster Crowley informed us that he’s already spoken with the Heartslabyul dorm leader about the match.

Lovely. Riddle was going to skin us alive.

Ugh… I was _not_ looking forward to this. At least it’ll make an interesting story to tell a certain someone later.

The moment the headmaster disappeared in a flurry outside the door I collapsed back onto the mattress, Ace grumbling incoherently about how it was way too early on a Saturday to be woken up like this, and we both fell back asleep. I can only assume Grim and Deuce followed suit, because it wasn’t until hours later that I woke up. The alarm on the blue-haired boy’s phone went blaring, and I _almost_ accidentally smacked him on the face in an attempt to get the phone to shut up.

Deuce quickly quieted the noise and sat up, yawning loudly and smoothing out his messy hair. “It’s time to get up…”

“Too early…” Ace mumbled, not even bothering to open his eyes. “Five more minutes.”

“Those five minutes will turn into an hour.” Deuce yawned. I blinked groggily, feeling sluggish and weak. My limbs all felt numb and like they were nothing more than noodles dangling from joints. I watched as the boy nudged Ace with his foot. “Come on, get up.”

“One more hour…”

“Wake. Up.” Deuce was starting to look irritated. “Don’t make me throw Grim on you.”

The cat monster’s tail swished angrily at that, ears twitching. “Try it and I’ll bite your fingers off.”

Yawning and letting my head drop to the side, I waited for a few moments for my brain to start processing. In that time Deuce had resorted to rolling Ace off the mattress, and was just about to push him off the when ginger realized what was happening and woke up, his red eyes snapping wide open with a yelp.

“O-Oi, oi, I’m up! I’m up!” He grabbed onto the blue-haired teen’s shirt to stop himself from toppling off the mattress towards the ground, adrenaline effectively leaving him awake.

I snorted at the scene, greatly amused. I then cringed, raising my head up and gingerly touching the purple prints on my throat. I could feel something stabbing me from inside my neck, little needles that I _knew_ just had to be thorns. It was a wonder how I hadn’t asphyxiated completely yet. Magic really did go against all logic, huh?

Well, so long as I can survive to the end of the day… it’ll be fine.

Seeing how everyone was starting to stand and stretch, yawning as they continued to wake up, I followed suit. Coughing and wheezing as I scrambled off the mattress, a wave of dizziness hit me when I finally stood up. The boys picking up their Heartslabyul dorm uniforms to get dressed, I tiredly grabbed mine off the ground and wandered to the bathroom- doing everything in there while they got ready in the lounge.

I felt so dazed as I wandered to the sink, limbs not quite wanting to work the way I needed them to as I leaned against the counter for balance. I guess I still a bit of a mess from yesterday.

Ow…

I choked, gasping a little as the pain left a constant tickle that I couldn’t get rid of. As I was coughing, I thought I heard something in the background- like water from a faucet dripping against ground. I forced myself to straighten and look around, deeply confused, but the bath wasn’t running and neither were any of the sinks. The shower curtains were all open, and it didn’t look like they were leaking either.

Were was that sound coming from?

I brought a hand to my mouth, feeling like I might throw up. I moved back to the sink and spit, turning the faucet on and letting the water run, the blood washing away into the drain. I coughed and gasped, watching as more crimson liquid splattered in the sink. So much so I was practically vomiting, and mixed in with it were quite a few rose petals, the once pure and lovely white stained red.

By the time I was finished I had fallen to my knees, body shaking as it struggled to recover.

_It hurts…_

I can’t move. My legs lacked all feeling. My arms felt like they were hardly even part of my body, and I could hear and feel my heart rampaging inside my chest as it struggled to keep beating. To keep me functioning just enough to live. My lungs felt shriveled and full, and the pain simply continued. Tears started to sting my eyes again, but I made no sound.

I simply sat there hunched over, close to disassociating from reality. Everything seemed to slow down as a result, and for a few moments it felt like I wasn’t really there. That none of this was actually happening. I wasn’t really here. It didn’t even really feel like I was the one moving my body when I got up to stand, actions sluggish and clumsy.

It was taking everything I had to get ready. I brushed my teeth and washed my face, ridding any hints of blood and throwing away petals. No matter what, I _can’t_ let the guys find out about my curse. They all had pretty bad reactions during lunch on the first day when Trey had questioned me about it, finding my curiosity about the one dorm, Pomefiore, suspicious, and more than once had Ace made a comment about my health. If they found out something was wrong…

They might leave me.

“It’s… okay.” I breathed, voice hoarse, raising my head up to stare at my ghastly reflection in the mirror. “I’m… okay.”

It was bad enough they had to go out of their way to help me. If they find out I might die soon, they’ll want absolutely nothing to do with me in fear that their efforts were in vain. It’s selfish, but… I don’t want that. They made being in this nightmare bearable. I want to at least find some way to help them back, to repay them for their kindness, before I reach my end.

Forcing the tears away, I leaned forward, hands draping against the cold metal of the sink. I could feel temperature again. That was a good sign. The tingling sensation of feeling starting to return formed and I was able to move my legs, the tickle of my nerves nothing compared to the rest of the pain I felt. A knock on the door snapped me back to attention, the room I was in becoming proper reality once more. I stared at the door, eyes wide like I was a deer-in-the-headlights.

“El, you in there?” Ace.

“Uh, y-yeah. Give… Give me a minute.”

I got dressed as fast as my body would let me. In the middle of buttoning up the red vest, I had to lean against the sink for balance. Once I was done, I stumbled over to the door and opened it, nearly crashing right into Ace and Deuce. A pair of hands on my shoulders caught me, Deuce staring down at me with worried eyes. Ace frowned deeply, blinking away sleep, clearly fighting another yawn.

“You feelin’ okay?” The ginger asked.

“...Dizzy.” I settled for answering, voice a bit breathy.

Neither of them looked like they knew what to say. Deuce awkwardly spoke, “Why don’t you rest in the lounge while Ace and I get ready? We still have a while before we need to head out, so…”

“Yeah.” Ace commented, a smirk curling onto his face. He planted a hand on the top of my head. “I’ll kick you awake like a certain egg-head did to me. Sound good?”

I wasn’t given much of a chance to respond as he started to violently ruffle my hair, nearly knocking me over. I half expected him to put me in a headlock or chokehold, but I guess he decided to be considerate of my bruises and simply gave me a small push with his hand, sending me towards Deuce. The boy yelped and caught me, and Ace laughed at the glare the blue-haired teen sent him.

“Anyway, you done in the bathroom?” Ace asked. Too dizzy to speak, I simply nodded. “Cool. See you downstairs.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> El is a bit mood-swingy. Whoops. It was worse, but I toned it down quite a bit and rewrote things. But El remembers her dreams now! So that's a thing. That book has a bit too many details in it about the history of its magic flowers, haha. This chapter was gonna be a bit longer, but it was already approaching twenty pages. SO! Here we are. Ends on A-Deuce. And El, sweetie, if you call yourself "nice" one more time you're going to turn into Crowley. XD 
> 
> When I was writing Malleus' line of "I could not call myself… who I am… if I can not even listen to the woes of a troubled human” all I could think of was that scene from FMAB when a certain prince was yelling at Fuhrer Bradley. XD You guys know the one. 
> 
> Also, I apologize for the late update, but I've been super focused on adding more to that animatic I mentioned before. I posted a second version of it up on Youtube, it's a minute longer than the first, but what I currently have saved on my computer right now is the whole song. I'm just outlining it right now so I can start coloring it. It has about 535 frames, and that's not going into backgrounds or effects. 
> 
> ANYWAY! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Mal is a sassy boi and Eleanora is an emotional trainwreck.
> 
> On another note, acidanser444 drew some really beautiful fanart on their tumblr. You guys should totally check it out when you have time. <3 
> 
> Thanks for reading and have a nice day/night! :3 And stay safe, okay?


	22. Desperate Measures

I had become one with the mattresses. As soon as I located my plague mask I put it on and collapsed- sinking into the fort like it was made out of nothing more than marshmallows. I wasn’t even that fond of marshmallows, unless of course they were melting inside a nice cup of hot chocolate, but at the moment it felt like a heavenly comparison. I didn’t have the strength to move, much less stand.

I barely even made it down the stairs in one piece.

Grim curled up against my side as I dozed off, and we only woke up when Ace and Deuce came back downstairs. Fully dressed in their dorm uniforms, their usual card suits were now painted on their faces. Ace wandered over, pulling a blanket out of the way to look into the fort, red eyes curious. “El, you- _whoa!”_

He let out a startled shout before quickly recollecting himself, a hand over his chest.

“Oh, thank god; that’s just your mask. Scared the shit out of me.”

Deuce chuckled, an arm folding over his chest while his other hand rose to his chin. “It is quite creepy, isn’t it?”

“Sorry.” I wheezed, struggling to sit up. I felt very lightheaded. Reaching a hand out, I shook Grim awake. “C-Come on. We gotta… go.”

Grum begrudgingly sat up. He then crawled out of my lap and hopped onto the ground, standing up on his hind legs and stretching his front paws in the air. “I’m starving!” He declared, yawning loudly. “What’s for breakfast?”

“Nothing, unfortunately. You’ll have to wait until lunch time.” Deuce informed, slumping his shoulders with a sigh. He shook his head. “With any luck we can eat at the dorm, but that’s only after we battle the dorm head. It’s your fault for sleeping in on the weekend.”

“What!?” Grim exclaimed, horrified. He then huffed, crossing his arms over his furry chest. “You guys better win against him…”

Ace’s red eyes flashed at that. “Riddle is going _down.”_ He stated harshly. The ginger then turned towards me, squinting as he took notice of something. “You’re… not wearing your make-up, are you?”

Huh? Oh. I made a face. “I don’t… have make-up. Cater… did it with his magic… remember?”

Understanding dawned on them. Deuce and Ace shared a look, and then the ginger leaned his head to the side with an over dramatic sigh. “You’re really making me do everything, aren’t you?”

“What?” I was so confused. I watched as he stepped forward, plopping down on the mattress and pulling a palette out of his pocket. “What are you-?”

I wasn’t able to finish. The ginger reached a hand over and snatched my mask by its beak, pulling it up and off my face. Muffled protests left my lips as this happened and I tried to stop him, but I was still sluggish and weak. He proved victorious and I quickly leaned back when he got a bit too close to my face, Ace staring intently as he popped the palette case open.

No way…

Was he really going to do my make-up? Holy frick.

“I’ve never really done it on another person before, but…” He looked thoughtful. “I’ve seen plenty of people do it back in middle school, so it shouldn’t be too hard. Besides, Riddle will be even harder to deal with if he’s super pissy at us for not dressing the part, and you’re basically one of us now, so- Deuce!”

“H-Huh? Uh, yes?” The blue-haired teen looked startled.

“Keep Grim outta the way. I’ll screw up if he jumps around.”

Deuce looked like he wanted to argue, not wanting anything to do with the gremlin, but relented and hoisted an annoyed cat monster into his arms. Grim hissed, struggling to escape the teen’s hold. “Let me go!”

“Just stay still, will you!?”   
  


Ace rolled his eyes at them. I tensed when he faced me again, dabbing the brush into the red make-up. “Okay, close your eyes. Don’t move either. I’m doing this part first- that way the heart will be easier after.”

I resisted the urge to cringe, forcing my expression to remain neutral as he moved in close, the brush running across my eyelids. Make-up was the worst. I hated it. It made my face feel heavy, it involved objects being held close to your face, and if someone else was the person putting it on you that meant you could feel their breath the entire time and it was highly uncomfortable. And yet here I was, begrudgingly sitting as still as I possibly could.

Thank gods he brushed his teeth- otherwise his breath would smell _awful._ Ugh. Wait, frick- now I’m remembering last night! No! Brain, why do you do this to me? Man, it’s a miracle Mr. Horns didn’t turn and run away. I was such a disaster- not that _that_ was anything new though.

When Ace was done with the shadow he used what I believed to be lip liner to draw the heart outline, slowly filling it in. “I don’t have the lip stick Cater used… but…” I could almost imagine him furrowing his brows, and I wondered if I was allowed to open my eyes yet. I slowly blinked them open, watching as he looked at the pen in his hand. “This should be fine. It’s the same color.”

I have no idea what he’s talking about. Wait, is he-

“Go “ah”.”

Even more uncomfortable, I parted my lips slightly so he could outline them with the liner. Then he had me close them so he could start filling them in, still using the same tool. Rubbing my lips together when he was done, I had to make several weird expressions to ensure that it looked right. Ace tilted his chin up with a smirk, proud of himself.

“You don’t look half bad. Still not as hot as me though.”

I snorted at that.

“Oi! What’s so funny, huh?” The teen demanded, acting offended. “I’m freaking gorgeous!”

“N-Never said you weren’t!” I wheezed, coughing into the black sleeve of my Heartslabyul dorm uniform. It hurt so much, but at the same time I really needed a good laugh. I waved a hand dismissively. “Sorry, sorry!”

His eyebrow twitched. “You’re trying to make me mad.”

Legs nearly giving out as I slid off the mattress, I reached over and gave his shoulders a playful shove, grinning widely and ignoring the slight sting of tears. My limbs felt so numb- it was taking everything I had to remain standing upright. To pretend there was nothing severely wrong with me.

“Aww, you know I love you!” I joked, but Ace wasn’t convinced. Tugging slightly on his sleeve, I tried to get him to move. “Now come on- we need to… to come up with a plan before… we take on Riddle. Deuce, you have an idea of what to do, right?”

Deuce nodded firmly, slamming a fist into his free palm, expression determined. Grim yelped and crawled onto his shoulder, desperate to avoid falling. “Cauldrons!”

I mean, basically, yeah, but… there should be a bit more to it than that.

I placed my hands on my waist, smile a bit strained now. There was no way we would win this if the boys thought in such a simplistic way. They have to use their strengths and work around it. “You can’t… give him a chance to respond. You have to summon the cauldrons right off the bat. If Riddle gets a chance to cast a spell, it’s… game over.”

Breathe. Speak slowly and quietly. Even if I taste it, I can’t show the blood.

I can’t show the petals.

As far as they know the only problem I have is my asthma, something of which I’m still questioning. That potion did _something_ to me, but what was unknown. The infection and inflammation had went down tremendously, but in doing so it was like the curse was given the opportunity to spread.

In helping my lungs, did the curse find the potion as a threat? There was so much I didn’t know, and even more I was trying to figure out. It felt like I was wandering in circles endlessly, more and more questions forming with even less answers. If I could get rid of the curse, I might be able to find out more about the effects the potion had on me.

Or maybe… no. I need to stop. I have to focus on today. The potion was… yesterday? No, the day before. Gods, I can’t even recall.

Attempting to shake my head of these confusing thoughts, I turned to my more tricky companion. “Ace, you should-”

“Use my wind to blow the magical pen out of his hand.” The ginger stated, finally standing up, the boy fixing his hair. I looked at him, startled. Ace grinned and placed a hand on my shoulder. He looked so determined; if not for the way his fingers tightened their grip, I wouldn’t have been able to guess how nervous he truly was. “We got this, El. We might not know a whole lot of magic yet, but we’re pretty good at our specialties. Relax.”

Grim huffed. “You all _better_ be good. I want this collar off today!”

I said nothing at that. He was clearly trying to convince himself. Ace started to walk towards the door, red eyes flashing fiercely as he pumped a fist in the air. “Now let’s go! It’s time to show that tiny tyrant who’s boss!”

At least he was excited. I, however, was not.

I yawned and stumbled after, somehow catching Grim when he jumped off of Deuce’s shoulder and onto mine, and we made our way down Main Street and towards the Hall of Mirrors. Considering the last few times I went through the mirror and tripped, Deuce decided to be nice and help me through it- giving me his hand like the gentleman he worked so hard to be.

“Are you sure you’re feeling okay?” He asked. His lips tilted down in a worried frown. “You’re a lot paler than usual… maybe you should have stayed at your dorm and-”

“I’m fine.” I cut him off. I quickly shut down the panic that was trying to well up inside me. “It’s just… a bad lung day. Air quality is… awful.”

He blinked, looking up at the sky. “Is it?” The boy scrunched his nose up, sniffing the air. “I can’t tell.”

Oh, gosh. Okay. Deuce was seriously adorable sometimes. If we weren’t about to march into battle with the strictest dorm leader ever, I might have ruffled his hair. He looked so genuinely confused about how I could tell if the air quality was bad or not. Shaking his head, giving up on understanding what I meant, the teen held his arm out towards me.

“Here. I-If you’re still dizzy…”

I faltered, once again stunned by just how _nice_ he could be. The familiar stinging sensation of tears reached my eyes and I blinked, ignoring the pain in my chest as I wrapped my arms around his. I really… didn’t deserve this. Him and Ace. Their kindness and patience when dealing with me. Their friendship.

And they didn’t deserve to have such a terrible secret kept from them.

They didn’t… deserve to have a friend who would die on them.

I choked a little bit when I tried to speak, unable to bring myself to look at Deuce in fear I would start crying. “Th… Thank you.” I’m not sure how much longer I can keep this up. The fear is starting to become overwhelming.

What if I _don’t_ make it through the day? The taste of iron is already strong on my tongue again. I found myself thinking of the dreams, wondering if the connection to Riddle was true. I was certain it was, yet the doubt lingered. If I worded things properly, I might be able to get through to him- yet… I was just a stranger.

And who would want to listen to someone they don’t even know talk as if they understood?

Even though… a part of me did. That was the most bothersome part. The reasons for why I am the person I am today. The self loathing, the skittishness, the anxiety, the doubt.

The fear of abandonment.

I inhaled deeply, shaking a little as I tried to calm down. Everything was going to be fine. Ace and Deuce were going to win this, the collars were going to be taken off, and I was going to help calm Riddle down. Make him realize that tyranny wasn’t the way.

We would survive.

A familiar voice ringing out snapped me out of my thoughts. “There they are!”

Cater was running towards us, alarm written all over his face, Trey following behind at a much slower place. The strawberry blond stumbled to a stop in front of us, eyes wide as he stared at a determined Ace. Panting, the third-year having run at full speed, he spoke to Ace.

“I-I know you guys said you were gonna challenge him, but I didn’t think you were actually gonna do it! You don’t stand a chance! There’s no way you’re going about this seriously, right? You’re not really trying to topple Riddle off his throne as dorm leader, _right?_ He’ll beat you in seconds!”

Ace didn’t like that. His features sharpened into a glare, his voice harsh. “You don’t know that! Now, how about you back off and let us go? I’m on a mission, and I am _not_ backing down! I won’t be satisfied until Riddle gets on his knees and begs for my forgiveness!”

“But-!” Cater wasn’t able to finish, the ginger pushing past him. “A-Ace! Wait!”

I take back everything I’ve said or thought. This… was going to end poorly.

“No! I’m going to win this!” Ace snapped, continuing on into the hedge maze. We followed after. “This stupid collar is getting off, and that tiny tyrant is gonna be taught a lesson!”

Trey sighed. “I told you he was serious about this, Cater. There’s no stopping it.”

“B-But this is kinda drastic, isn’t it?” Cater stammered. His green eyes were wide as he rushed after the group, legs moving as quickly as they could to keep up with Ace. “You don’t have to do something as insane as challenging the dorm leader! That just makes you look desperate! You’ll be all over social media- people will make fun of you! Bully you, even! You’ll be a total laughing stock.”

“Who cares!?” Ace snapped. “Desperate times call for desperate measures, and I am _sick_ of being treated like this! I know you are too, so stop pretending!”

The third-year hesitated at that. “I…”

“He’s right.” Deuce spoke up, calmer yet just as serious. “Rules are something to be followed, but Riddle takes them too far. I refuse to follow a leader like that. I’m with Ace on this. I’m sorry.”

Cater looked defeated. Trey patted him on the shoulder, gaining his attention, and spoke with a soft voice. “They’ve made up their minds.” He then pulled away, tipping his hat down over his face- glasses glinting from the sunlight. “We just have to do our best at damage control; no matter who wins or loses, Riddle will be furious.”

Yeah… I figured.

Hearing Deuce start to mumble to himself in an attempt to memorize the super-easy-to-remember plan, Grim made a face and leaned towards me. Whispering quietly, he said, “They’re not going to win, are they?” He had absolutely no faith in them.

I couldn’t really blame him.

Deuce’s eyebrows were furrowed, the young teen heavily concentrating on the task at hand. It was the same spell he always used, so I had no idea why he was having such trouble with it. He wasn’t the brightest, but he tried his best. For someone who used to bully others for not having magic, I was starting to suspect he wasn’t that great at it himself. How ironic.

I cringed, expression near identical to Grim’s own. “We’ll… find out.”

Oooh, I was not looking forward to this. The dread only settled deeper into my stomach when I saw the crowd that had gathered up ahead, all the students of Heartslabyul excited to watch a pair of freshman get their rears handed to them in a magic duel. Headmaster Crowley was in the middle of the group of students, Riddle beside him.

Here we go…

Ugh, I’m so nervous. When Headmaster Crowley began to speak, I could feel my chest tighten- my anxiety rising to newer heights. I prayed all went well, even if I was expecting otherwise. I made a promise to meet with someone and I intended to keep it. I also didn’t want to hear the fuss that would be made if the boys lost.

The headmaster stepped forward, clearing his throat loudly and holding a small hand mirror to the side. “The decisive match for the title of Heartslabyul’s Dorm Leader will begin shortly!” He declared. At their names, my friends stepped up to their side of the empty field. “The challengers are Deuce Spade and Ace Trappola! Defending his title as the current dorm leader…”

A silence spread over the hedge maze as a familiar redhead strolled up to the opposite side of the field.

“Riddle Rosehearts!” Gesturing to him with a grand wave of his hand, the headmaster turned to look at him. “In accordance to the rules of the decisive match, please remove the magic sealing collars!”

The young man did not look pleased at all by the situation, but did as told. He closed his eyes and raised the hand that wasn’t holding his scepter, snapping his fingers and releasing a burst of magic. Ace and Deuce jolted when the collars around their necks suddenly came undone, the objects vanishing with a flash of light.

“Wh-Whoa!” Deuce gasped, his hands flying up to his neck. He sighed, rubbing the exposed flesh of his throat. “I can breathe normally again…”

_Lucky._

Oh, wow. Okay. This is no time to be bitter or petty right now. Let’s just be happy things are going decently at the moment. Jeez.

I watched as Ace slumped over, the ginger greatly relieved now that the collar restricting him was gone. I wondered what it felt like to have your magic sealed- and if having the collar removed felt like a rush of adrenaline coursing through your veins.

“It’s finally off…” The ginger sighed.

“It’ll be back on soon enough,” Riddle promised, an uncharacteristically cruel smirk spreading across his lips, “so why don’t you focus on savoring the taste of freedom while you still can? I honestly can’t believe you guys had the audacity to challenge me; I thought I had misheard the headmaster when he told me your plan! Are you really sure you want to go through with this?”

His words only served as fuel for the fire burning within the boys.

I had never seen such a dark look on Ace’s face, the boy looking almost _hateful_ at he stared the dorm leader down. Standing straight with his magical wand at his side, he placed a hand on his hip and hissed, “Most definitely!”

“I wouldn’t challenge you as a joke.” Deuce added, eyes narrowed and voice cold.

I almost got chills watching this take place, and I found myself cringing and stepping back, holding Grim close. Standing to my right was Cater- who was frantically typing away on his phone- and on my left was Trey- who looked like he wanted to turn away and avert his eyes, but couldn’t do anything except watch the confrontation take place.

Figuring out rather quickly that neither freshmen were going to back down, Riddle scoffed and held his scepter at the ready. Oh, that’s right- that served as his magical pen, didn’t it? I remember him using it at the unbirthday party when he had used his _unique magic_. Yet he did have a magical pen attached to his school uniform, so…

Was the crystal on his scepter actually a detachable magical pen? Or were they two totally separate objects- the scepter saved for the dorm leader specifically? Did that mean he had two magical crystals? Why? What does that accomplish?

_And why..._

I squinted at the redhead, trying to get a better look at the crystal itself.

_...does it look black now? Or… not black?_

It was darker than I remembered it being, colored much closer to garnet than the bright crimson that all the other Heartslabyul crystals were. Maybe it was just the lighting, but I could see the sun reflecting off of Ace and Deuce’s magical pens. It made them shine brighter, so why was his so dark?

How odd.

Did I look at the scepter wrong earlier? I could have sworn it was the same as the rest. That had to be the case- definitely. Why would a magical crystal suddenly change color like that? It just doesn’t make sense. Then again, nothing in this world makes sense to me.

And I just… couldn’t shake off this awful feeling brewing in my stomach. Like something was terribly wrong.

“Then let us begin.” Riddle said, storm grey eyes full of annoyance. He clearly didn’t perceive the teens as a threat.

Cater finally stopped typing on his phone, instead holding a hand up and waving at the redhead- a grin plastered on his face. “Hey~ Riddle! What do you want to do about afternoon tea?” What? That was a strange question. I looked at him with furrowed brows, not understanding where that came from.

Riddle didn’t seem to mind it. He almost chuckled at the innocent question, gaze flickering over to the third-year calmly. “That’s a silly thing to ask. The rules state that my afternoon tea time always happens at exactly four o’clock.”

“But…” Cater hesitated. He held his phone up for the dorm leader to see, even if Riddle was too far away to actually read it. “It’s already past three thirty…”

Riddle raised an eyebrow at that, placing a hand on his waist. “Do you actually think that I’d ever be late for something? You underestimate me.” Riddle turned backed to his opponents, both of whom were looking quite nervous- if not determined. “This ordeal will be over shortly.”

Raising his voice, the redhead called out to Ace and Deuce.

“As you can see, I am quite busy! Dueling you both one at a time would be quite troublesome, so come at me together!”

In the distance, I could hear the other Heartslabyul students cheering. “Fight on, dorm leader!”

“Take them down!”

“Put them in their place!”

Trey hid a grimace at their cheers, pulling his hat down over his glasses, and seeing the way I tensed he reached out and rested a hand on my shoulder. He said nothing, knowing there wasn’t anything that could cheer me up or make this situation better, and the four of us- him, Cater, Grim, and myself- could only stand on the sidelines and observe.

Grim let out a hiss. “This is making me mad…!”

Deuce tightened his grip on his magical pen, his other personality daring to show through. He grit his teeth at the cheers of their dorm mates. “They really know how to run their mouths, don’t they?”

“You remember the plan, don’t you?” Ace demanded, looking at his companion. Deuce nodded. The boys got into stances, ready to battle, while Riddle focused his attention on the headmaster.

“We’re ready.” He told the mask-wearing man.

Headmaster Crowley held the hand mirror up again. “The match will begin when the mirror I throw hits and shatters against the ground!”

Wait, seriously? That’s bad luck! He’s going to end up unfortunate for seven whole years- maybe more if this was a recurring thing! Oh my gods. I watched in horror as he raised the object above his head.

“Ready… set…!”

_CRASH!_

“Fight!”

Not a second was wasted. Ace and Deuce couldn’t even open their mouths before Riddle had his scepter pointed at them, the rage he had been holding back before now coloring his features.

“OFF WITH YOUR HEADS!”

The screams that rang out pierced my very soul. The collars that had just been removed reappeared around their necks, snapping shut with an audible _click._ The pain in their voices had me flinch, and my eyes went wide as I saw them curse and grab at their new accessory.

“Shit!” Ace hissed, knocked down to one knee from the sheer force of having his magic cut off. “W-We didn’t even have time… to get our magic materialized!”

“To come this far… and not be able to do a thing…” Deuce winced.

I wasn’t even sure what happened. “H-How did… How did he… do that so fast?” Riddle had shouted his orders the instant the battle started, ending the match as quickly as it began. I expected it, but actually seeing it was startling.

“Powerful magic comes from a powerful imagination.” Headmaster Crowley informed, folding his arms over his chest. “So the stronger your ability to accurately imagine the magic, the more powerful and more effective it will be.” A pleased smile formed on his lips, the man clapping his hands together. “And Mr. Rosehearts has polished his magic to a beautiful shine!”

Grim choked. “Th… The level gap is way too wide! They did even worse than I thought they would!” The cat monster looked close to tears.

Riddle chuckled at his achievement. “It didn’t even take five seconds, nonetheless three. And you earnestly sought to challenge me with those skills… Aren’t you embarrassed?” His smirk fell, irritation taking over instead. He held his scepter in front of him, unimpressed with what just occurred today. “This merely proves that rule violators are _always_ wrong… just as mother had said.”

There it was. I zoned in on that statement, like a moth to a flame. The bad feeling in my gut only worsened.

Deuce forced himself to straighten, fighting the pain of his magic being cut off and trying to stare the dorm leader down. “Y-You’re right that… rules should be followed. But enforcing absurd rules just makes you a tyrant!”

And tyrants will always be overthrown.

Riddle didn’t seem to realize this. “Haah? Rule breaking has its consequences,” He said coldly, “and in this dorm I _am_ the rules. Those who refuse to obey don’t have the right to complain when I take off their heads!”

Biting down hard on my lower lip, I ignored the shakiness of my hands and forced my feet to step forward, calling out to the redhead. “That _isn’t_ how it works, Riddle! I-I understand that you want them to be better people, and that they’ll become better by following your rules, but some of those rules are _wrong!_ They’re-!”

“SILENCE!”

I went completely still, the hair on the back of my neck standing up as he pointed his scepter at me. It felt like I was back in that botanical garden, facing against a predator. His storm grey eyes were scared, almost bordering on the line of complete insanity. The redhead… was being pushed into a corner and he could feel it. His seat of power was being threatened, his way of ruling questioned. Riddle was starting to panic.

“What rules or behavior is considered _wrong_ is for me to decide!” He hissed, voice raised loud enough for all to hear.

My hold on Grim tightened, the cat monster’s claws digging into my arms as he watched Riddle yell at me. At all of us.

Riddle’s grimace turned into a smile, and he chuckled. The dorm leader faced me completely, sounding disappointed as he spoke. “If you can’t even follow a simple rule, just what was your education like? I know you’re from another world, Eleanora, so you can’t possibly understand. You were born sickly and magicless, and will forever _be_ sickly and magicless. You can’t even _do_ anything without the help of others.”

I… that wasn’t…

I’m not…

“Why- your parents were probably poor and unable to help you receive much in terms of schooling. I had previously hoped you were more obedient than the rest, but now it’s clear to me that you are not. As such you are utterly inadequate and are not, by any means, in a position to _lecture_ me.”

No…

That’s not… That’s not true.

“I-I’m not…” My voice wouldn’t come out. “They’re not…”

His words were like daggers, their sharp blades hitting deep and slicing through every weak spot I had. We only had a few conversations together, but he was observant enough to already figure out my insecurities. Of course, it was probably partially my own fault for not hiding them better, but… still. The thought that he could actually mean and believe the things he was saying hurt.

It hurt in more ways than one. Riddle smiled cruelly at me, completely unlike the kind yet strict boy who had been so protective of me earlier. “Why don’t you just stand back and remain quiet like a good student, hm? You’re clearly not fit for much else.”

I could feel myself shutting down as the tears that had welled up in my eyes fell, the liquid hot as it burned my face. I wanted to speak, to lash out, to say anything to defend myself, but my brain just… wasn’t processing this. It had detached itself from reality, and therefore left me struggling to recognize that this person was the same Riddle from before.

When I didn’t speak up, he hummed. “Ah, so you _can_ listen after all.”

Deuce was already cracking his knuckles by the time the dorm leader finished speaking. His jaw tightened as his darker side threatened to take over completely. “Why you _little…!”_

He took a step towards the older student, clearly intent on beating some sense into him after the way he had insulted me, but Ace was already there. The ginger was running full speed, his fist swinging through the air, his red eyes full of fury. His knuckles made contact with Riddle’s face, sending the teen sprawling onto the ground and knocking his little crown right off of his head. Ace huffed, glaring him down with an expression I dared not describe.

“Just what the hell is _wrong_ with you!?” He demanded.

“A-Ace!?” Deuce exclaimed, startled. Several other students, alongside Cater, Trey, and Headmaster Crowley shouted in shock. No one had been prepared for such a reaction.

My brown eyes were locked onto the scene, mind still not quite processing what was happening. This was far from what I had planned for today, what I had expected to happen, and every single worst case scenario that went through my mind before was blown out of the water. This was nothing like I imagined. Riddle was acting like a terrible human being and Ace was furious.

“Do you even hear the words coming out of your mouth!?” Ace continued to yell, flexing his wrist now that the blow had been dealt. “Just shut up already!”

“H-He really hit him…” A student mumbled, unable to believe his eyes. “He seriously punched the dorm leader.”

“Yeah!” Grim cheered, pumping a fist in the air now that his initial surprise was over. I jolted, snapping out of my shock by the movement. I looked down at the cat monster, wincing as the collar threatened to dig into my bruised throat. “Got ‘im right in the face with a beautiful right hook!”

I wasn’t so sure that one could call that violence “beautiful”. I watched as Ace shook his head, the boy taking a step back and running his fingers through his hair with an exhausted groan. “You know what? I don’t even care anymore. About being dorm leader, about the duel, about _any_ of it.”

Riddle was still stunned. Tears stung his eyes, the arrogant smirk having been punched right off his face. “Y-You… hit me…?”

“Kids _aren’t_ their parents’ trophies, and the achievements of the kids don’t determine their parents’ worth!” Ace ranted, the crowd not saying anything as he told the redhead off for his behavior. Riddle stared at him, baffled and disbelieving. “I finally understand; the reason why you’re such a bastard isn’t because of your parents- it’s because _you_ didn’t make a single friend to tell you off for being such a tyrant all last year, and now you think your behavior is okay! It’s all because of _you!_ ”

“Wh-What… are you saying?” Riddle inquired softly, voice quiet and shaky. He looked ready to break down at any given moment. “You don’t… know what… you’re talking about.”

“Growing up under your obsessive mother must have been some kind of hell,” Ace admitted, not relenting his harsh tone as his glare only darkened, “but that doesn’t give you the right to take it out on others, or to speak down to Eleanora like that! Is all you have to say for your actions “mama this” and “mama that”? Take responsibility! Think for yourself! You’re no “Crimson Ruler”, you’re just a baby that’s good at magic!”

“A… baby?” Riddle echoed. His bangs fell into his face and he slowly stood, scepter and crown discarded on the ground. “Me…? You don’t…”

He took a deep breath. When he looked up again, his storm grey eyes were _murderous._

“You don’t know a thing about me!”

“Uh, duh?” Ace said, raising his brows. He placed his hands on his hips. “There’s no way I would! Do you think I _could_ know when you’ve got that sort of attitude!? I’m not letting you off the hook.”

“Shut up…” Riddle mumbled, before starting to scream. “Shut up, shut up, shut up! I’ve had enough of this!”

Ace yelped, stumbling backwards and nearly falling over at the sudden change of behavior. Riddle glared at him, his hands shaking as he tossed his cape over his shoulder, effectively freeing his left arm.

“My mother was correct… so that means I’mcorrect! You _have_ to listen to me!”

“Riddle!” Trey finally spoke up, stepping towards the chaos with a frown. His conflicted amber gaze was heavy with concern. Riddle looked at his vice dorm head uncertainly, gazing at him as if he was trying to figure out if Trey was friend or foe. Trey held his hands up for Riddle to see, attempting to placate him. “You need to calm down. The duel is already over. You’ve won.”

Headmaster Crowley nodded firmly. “It’s as Mr. Clover says! Challenger Ace Trappola is disqualified for his outburst! Continuing to escalate the fight goes against school regulations!”

It might have even worked, too. Riddle was starting to uncoil slightly as Trey approached, resting his hands gently on his shoulders, but then everyone began to whisper. From those dressed in red to those dressed in black, every single student was talking to each other. Panicking. And then one of them, I’m not entirely sure who, lost their composure.

Before we knew it… something was sailing through the air… and it splattered all over Riddle’s cape. He and Trey stared at it, both of them trying to fathom what just happened.

“Is that… an egg?” Trey asked, stunned. He looked around the hedge maze at the crowd of students. “Did one of the residents… throw it?”

Riddle stared at his cape and then at the people around him, eyes narrowed as he tried to decipher who did it. “Which one of you threw that!? Who threw the egg!? Reveal yourself!”

The students said nothing, merely looking at each other in tense silence. Seeing their omission, his shoulders began to shake. He started to chuckle, then laugh- until the sound became loud and maniacal. And as abruptly as it had started, it stopped. Riddle glared at them, fingers curling into fists, the leather of his gloves crackling at the tension.

“You guys can’t handle it…?” He murmured. Riddle started to yell again, voice cracking from the volume of which he shouted. “I’m the one who can’t handle it anymore!No matter how strict I become, no matter how many times I take off your heads, you all keep breaking the rules! This guy, that guy; you’re all selfish _idiots!”_

Riddle took a deep breath and shuddered. He brought his hands up, gripping his arms tightly.

"Fine… have it your way.” He whispered. The dorm leader looked at them all, face turning red with rage. “If you won’t come forward, I’ll just punish _all_ of you!”

He threw a hand out, completely ignoring Trey’s cries of protest.

“ _OFF WITH YOUR HEADS!”_

Collars appeared left and right. They snapped shut around the necks of everyone around us, save for those close to Riddle like Trey and Cater, and even Headmaster Crowley. The only reason I was spared was because I had no magic to be sealed away, but that did little to quell the horror inside me of having to watch and listen to all these pained and panicked screams.

They were all rushing around, desperate to escape the attack and to get away from Riddle. Riddle who was laughing loudly, more than pleased with the way fear was rushing across the student body. He was elated; euphoric, even! Riddle has never felt more powerful and in control than this moment.

“How’s that!?” He goaded. “You can’t even _dream_ of touching me with your magic! Ahaha!”

This is bad. This is really, really bad. But… what can I do?

He wasn’t wrong when he said I was inadequate. I was weak and I was useless, and I’ll forever be a sickly magicless human. There was no way I could take on someone so unhinged, nonetheless an actual magician. Just what words can I say… and what actions can I possibly take… to stop him?

Can I even do that? I barely even know Riddle.

The only knowledge and understanding I have of his situation is from what I was either told or had witnessed in my cursed dreams. We weren’t close. We were practically strangers. And yet… watching him act like this… was almost as painful as the thorns inside my chest.

A darkness seemed to be shrouding his shoulders now, a pool of black forming around his feet. Riddle chuckled to himself and raised a gloved hand up to his chin, the lights from his eyes starting to dim. “Mother was right,” He claimed with a sickening grin, “enforcing the rules _does_ make me the most correct.”

No. No, it doesn’t. It’s the farthest thing from correct. It’s vile.It’s cruel.

It’s _wrong._

But he was too far gone to understand that.

Headmaster Crowley walked up, glaring at him. “Stop this at once, Mr. Rosehearts! This isn’t like you at all!”

Cater moved over to them, visibly alarmed, his phone nowhere in sight. “T-Trey… if he keeps casting his magic like that-!”

Whatever message he was trying to get across to the third-year seemed to have worked, because the man went pale. Trey tried to move closer to Riddle, but the darkness pooling around the redhead’s feet fought to keep him away. “You’ve done enough!” He pleaded, trying to talk him down. “Riddle, please, listen to me! You need to stop!”

“Hey!” Ace called out, catching the dorm leader’s attention and pulling his gaze away from Trey. The ginger didn’t seem too terribly bothered by the mass panic happening around him, too angry to care. “Not everything is going to go the way you want! Throwing a tantrum like this is what makes you a baby! Don’t you realize that!?”

Riddle turned even redder in the face, the darkness growing in size and curling around his legs almost like tendrils, yet far more liquid in shape and form. It even seemed to drip, staining his clothes in that jet black color. His veins were visible on his forehead, and his voice was nothing more than breathy shrieks, strained and full of rage.

“TAKE THAT BACK THIS INSTANT! DO YOU _WANT_ TO BE RUN THROUGH!?”

He waved his hands behind him, the pool of black moving behind him at command.

“As if I would!” Ace retorted, only continuing to insult him. “You’re a baby through-and-through. Baby Rosehearts. Just admit that you’re a tyrant already!”

The words that ripped out of Riddle’s throat wasn’t even intelligible by this point. I wasn’t even sure it _was_ words, instead convinced it was just an amalgamation of enraged noises, Riddle no longer having the sense of self to speak as his hate took over.

“Move, hurry!” Cater shouted at the panicking students, ushering for them to get away. “Escape to the school! Find the teachers and- _whoa!”_

He yelped, the earth starting to shake as the rose trees began to shift. People tripped over each other, failing to scramble away as the plants were torn out of the ground by their very roots. Cans of red paint tumbled over and stained the green grass crimson, and rocks and bits of earth began to float about in the air. Ladders toppled and roses tore themselves apart until they were nothing more than petals being carried by the wind.

A black mist tainted the area, leaving the air thick and muggy. It felt like I was trying to breathe through mud. But the smell of it…? Oh, that was the worst part. It was strong and putrid, and it burned my nostrils. It took a few moments, what with my being so distracted from all the flying trees and paint cans, and the tendrils of literal darkness threatening to envelop Riddle whole, for me to recognize it.

_Ink._

It smelled like ink. Like the river of black from my dreams. This wasn’t… a coincidence, was it? What did this mean? Why was the ink surrounding Riddle in such a way? Is it corrupting him somehow? I snapped out of my thoughts by Grim digging his claws even deeper into my arms, the cat monster probably even drawing blood.

His ears drew back and his fur stood on end, tail going completely still. “Th-The rose trees are flying all over the garden!” He cried out, terrified.

“Th-This amount of magic is insane!” Deuce yelped, stepping back and looking at the floating trees and earth bits in horror. “Is he really going to come after us with all that!?”

No… not us.

“Rose trees, heed my call!” Riddle yelled, tossing an arm out to the side. I realized all too soon who his target was, seeing the way Ace was stumbling back, alarm in his red eyes as he understood the consequences of his actions far too late. “To pieces with them all!”

Headmaster Crowley was screaming, shouting at everyone to move away, but there was no stopping it. Riddle had grown too unstable; the fear and anxiety of losing his way, the madness of being told everything he was and had been taught was wrong, had taken hold. All the insecurities within his heart had grasp of him, and the darkness seeping into his skin strengthened that fear.

Those trees were _going_ to hit someone. Those roots were going to stab into someone in several different places at a very high speed, and they were going to die.

But it didn’t have to be Ace.

Before I even knew what I was doing I was running, Grim thrown out of my arms, legs recklessly running as fast they could go- eyes locked on one thing only.

My friend.

With eyes burning and the taste of iron hot on my tongue, I knew I wouldn’t have the strength to push Ace out of the way. Yet there was nothing else I could, so I slid to a stop in front of him, my arms extended and eyes squeezed shut tight, heart thumping so loud it was the only thing I could hear as my lungs throbbed inside my aching chest. Waiting for the end, I found myself apologizing-

To Ace and Deuce, for not being a better friend. To Grim, for ruining his chances at becoming a magician. To Mr. Horns, for not being able to keep my promise. And…

To my family, for never being able to properly say goodbye.

And I stood there, shaking from head-to-toe, burning tears streaming down my face as I braced myself for unspeakable pain. Yet… it never came.

“We’re… alive?” I heard the boy behind me say. Blinking slowly and opening my eyes, I wheezed and coughed, staring in shock at the beautiful sight ahead of us. “Th-These are… card suits?”

Floating before us, having replaced the rose trees that had been aiming to kill, were card suits. Colorful shades of red, blue, green, pink, and yellow decorated the many hearts, spades, diamonds, and clovers. They fell slowly, yet moved like rain drops. If I wasn’t already having such trouble intaking oxygen, I’d dare say they were breathtaking.

“H-How…?” It hurt to speak.

Deuce was just as dumbfounded. “The rose trees just… transformed…”

Standing up on his hindlegs, Grim looked down at himself and then at the students who had all had their magic forcibly sealed. “Th-The collars are gone, too! They’re all card suits now!”

No way. What even happened? Wait. I turned my head, watching with blurry vision as Trey crossed his arms, staring down at Riddle with stern eyes. In his hand sat his magical pen. The man was just as afraid as the rest of us, but he was ready to defend at a moment’s notice. Even if it hurt him to fight his friend.

“Riddle,” He said once more, repeating himself as many times as it took until his voice got through, “you _have_ to stop now while you still can!”

Cater hurriedly looked at his friend, realization dawning. “T-Trey, this isn’t your magic, is it? How are you doing this!?”

“I told you; my “Doodle Suit” can overwrite anything for a short period of time! So I overwrote “Riddle’s magic” into “my magic”.”

“Y-You can actually do that!?” Cater exclaimed. “You’re kidding, right? That’s cheating!”

“Would you rather them die!?” He argued. Cater faltered at that.

Riddle was disturbed. He kept waving his hand around, trying to cut off the heads of those who had just been freed. “Why isn’t it working!? I said “Off With Your Heads”! _“Off with Your Heads”,_ _damn it!_ Why won’t anything but card suits appear!?”

Shaking his hands to clear himself of the jitters, Trey stepped forward- boldly approaching the crazed dorm leader. The black tendrils swirling around Riddle tried to push the man back, but he fought, desperately trying to reach the person who had once been his friend.

“Riddle!” He cried out, shouting as loud as his voice would let him. “You _have_ to stop this! If you go any further… you’ll lose everything! Everybody is terrified of you; just look at their faces! You can’t keep doing this!”

Riddle wasn’t listening. He was too distraught by the knowledge of the card suits appearance to listen to the frightened mumblings of his classmates. The darkness surrounding him seemed to strengthen, and for all Trey fought it seemed to do little good. “You… overwrote my magic?” Storm grey met fearful amber. “Does… that mean your magic surpasses mine?”

“There’s no _way_ that’s the case!” Trey exclaimed, pushing against the tendrils as they tried to block the redhead from view. “Riddle, just _calm down_ and we can talk this out! There’s no need for anymore violence! _Please!”_

“You mean, stop and talk so you can tell me I’m wrong, too?” Riddle’s voice cracked.

Trey looked on in horror as black markings seemed to draw along the boy’s face, ink dripping in the shape of a heart around his right eye. The storm grey color was beginning to change into a vibrant red. The life slowly drained from the dorm leader’s face, leaving him as pale as death itself.

“Even though... we’ve been upholding these strict rules all this time?”

Tears began to form in Riddle’s eyes and he choked, fervently shaking his head, fingers tangling into his hair. His legs were covered in darkness by this point, keeping him rooted to the spot and unable to move. He either didn’t notice or didn’t care, for he made no move to resist their advancement.

“I-I’ve been enduring and enduring and _enduring_ it all this time!” Riddle started to sob, his body trembling as he cried. “I… I don’t… I don’tbelieve you!”

Headmaster Crowley had had enough of this. His hand twitched towards the whip-of-love he had attached to his hip. “Mr. Rosehearts, you musn’t! If you use anymore magic, you’re going to _Overblot!”_

My gaze snapped over to the headmaster upon hearing that.

I recognized that term, though what it meant still remained unknown to me. I wished I had prodded a certain someone more about its meaning, because it could have served as useful information. Especially in this situation. Instead, I could only watch helplessly as Riddle began to shout again, the fingers on his right hand stained completely black as he placed them against his chest.

“I am… I am _absolutely, definitely… CORRECT!”_

Riddle threw his hands out, and the darkness Trey had been so desperately fighting against became too strong, sending the boy flying back as it snapped shut. He rolled across the ground with a grunt and everyone watched as the tendrils circled around Riddle completely, taking shape in the form of some sort of… crown. Trey screamed for his friend, but it did nothing.

A few seconds later, though, the strange blob of ink burst open, and the person that came out of it… wasn’t the Riddle we knew. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm super sleepy right now and am about to fall asleep, but I think I got the majority of the typos. Hopefully this chapter meets your guys' expectations. XD The beginning did not want to flow at all, but once the action started it began to do the thing. My brain is mush though now, lol. 
> 
> Also Trey totally stole the spotlight at the end, haha. Next chapter will be the big battle. Woo! What do you guys think? Riddle kinda deserved that punch, right? He was seriously mean to MC in the game, so I thought "Why not?" and had him verbally attack El. I have some plannnnssss for next chapter, mwehehehehe~ plans mostly involving a tree, but we'll see if that actually comes to pass or not. 
> 
> (Coughs) Ahem! Thanks for reading, and have wonderful day/night! <3


	23. Eleanora Quince

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> About halfway through El starts cursing a lot for about a single paragraph. Fair warning.

It… was her. It had to be.

There, hovering above and behind him, was the queen. The Queen of Hearts. Yet something about her was _wrong_ and _different._ Her entire body was a glass jar filled to the brim with ink, black liquid spilling out from the bottom where her legs were supposed to be. Her dress was shredded at the hems, red-and-black pieces of cloth stitched together as if they were the only thing holding her together.

Her head was the most interesting part- the jar wasn’t like the one from the mines’ ink monster. Instead this one was shaped like a heart, with a golden crown resting atop it- _fused_ to it. Her goopy jet black hands wrapped around a large rose tree, red paint dripping from the white flowers ominously. The creature was even bigger than the last one, and I could have sworn it was glaring daggers at us despite its obvious lack of a face.

And Riddle… oh, that poor boy…

Gods. He looked like death itself. His skin was sickeningly pale, lips so dark they almost looked blue. His once pretty storm grey eyes had turned a lifeless crimson, and his arms were covered in ink. The dress he adorned was in an even worse shape than the one the monster seeming to possess him wore, the fabric shredded and torn and covered with holes. An inky black crown rested atop his head in replacement of the one Ace had knocked off earlier, though this one dripped and seeped into Riddle’s red hair.

And his voice… it was distorted. Inhuman. Chills ran down my spine in fright upon hearing his deranged laughter, knowing that his mind and heart were close to gone. I can’t recall the ink monster from before possessing anyone, but…

Looking closer at the red abyss burning in the sloshing black beneath the monster’s torn dress, I dared say it was looking to _absorb_ Riddle. His thigh high boots weren’t even touching the ground, the darkness helping him to float. As if they were dangling him like he was some kind of human sacrifice- only further showcasing how he wasn’t himself.

It was eerie and grotesque, and everyone was _terrified._

“Riddle…”

All the hurt that I felt from his harsh words before was gone now.

I just felt scared for him instead.

“H-He’s covered in black…”

As fond as I was of darker aesthetics, this one did no nothing but leave me disturbed. I stepped back, wheezing, nearly bumping into Ace who grabbed me by the arms to stop me from falling as my numb legs buckled. I couldn’t breathe, I could hardly even think. I could only watch as the person once named Riddle brought an ink-covered hand up to his chin, the boy chuckling malevolently as his cold, scarlet red eyes gazed down at us.

 _“Those foolish enough to disobey me- I have no need of them!”_ He threw his arm out to the side, the darkness around him increasing. _“I am the law in my world; I_ ** _am_** _the rules! Any response other than “Lord Riddle” is unacceptable! And any who disobey… will lose their heads!”_

His warbled laughter echoed across the area. Headmaster Crowley let out a wail, bringing his hands up to the sides of his masked face. “How could this happen!? Ahhhh, just look at this mess! A student has gone into Overblot right before my eyes…”

There it was again. That term. I turned my head, struggling to listen as dizziness threatened to make me collapse.

“What the hell is Overblot!?” Grim demanded, panicking. “Riddle’s gone insane! He’s got some wicked air to him now!”

“Overblot is a state all magicians must avoid,” Headmaster Crowley hurriedly explained, “a state where a person winds up caught in a storm of negative energy, making them lose control of all their emotions and magic!”

“I-I don’t get it…”

“Me either!” Deuce exclaimed.

Cater was growing exasperated quickly, knowing we didn’t have time for a detailed explanation. “Ah, jeez! He’s basically just fallen into an evil berserker state!”

Trey nodded, keeping his eyes on the creature before us, ready to use his _unique magic_ again if need be. “Riddle’s life will be in danger if he keeps using magic like this. We have to stop him!”

“H-His life!?” Grim screeched. Oh gods. Okay. “You’re joking, right!?”

That means it _was_ possessing him. My earlier observation was correct. I watched as Riddle tried and failed to take off the heads of other students, Trey overwriting the magic as fast as he could. I shifted, clinging to Ace’s arm and moving behind him, breathing heavily as I tried to get my heart to calm down. Red eyes glanced down at me before looking up at the dorm leader and the monster behind him.

“The safety of the other students is top priority!” Headmaster Crowley exclaimed, pulling out his whip-of-love. “We need to focus on evacuating them! I’ll handle that, while you all go to the school and locate the remaining dorm heads and teachers! Mr. Rosehearts _must_ be brought back to his senses before he runs out of magic!”

Why? Does him running out of magic mean…

...he’ll die?

My oxygen-deprived brain was having trouble processing those words. I was still trying to understand that the nice redhead from before had turned into something so twisted, so _unlike himself_ , and learning that he’ll lose his life if this kept on only made me more confused and lost. So much was happening in such a short span of time; it was leaving me nauseous trying to keep up.

Okay. Okay… um. Think. Focus. Breathe.

If Riddle dies, it’ll be because of the ink monster behind him- draining him of his magic and lifeforce. His heart was in chaos, trapping him in the creature’s hold; something that was created due to the storm of negative energy welling up inside of him. His overuse of magic and pent up trauma is what led him to this state.

That was what I was understanding.

So… if… if we can calm Riddle down and separate him from the monster, and maybe destroy the glass jar that was the ink monster’s head… we might be able to save him. Right? My grip tightened on Ace’s arm, eyebrows furrowing as the magic flowing around the garden had my hair blowing wildly in the wind.

So much pain was flooding through my body; it left me weak and dizzy and sick, and I felt like I was going to pass out at any moment. But… I needed to stay strong. To push myself past my limit. I had to last just a bit longer, to survive a little while more to get us through this. I remembered the dreams- so I knew what was troubling him. I could… _no._

I _have_ to talk him down. It was the only way.

“The ink jar.” I choked out, catching Ace’s attention. “I-It’s… the same. Just like… back then.”

He knew right away what I was talking about. Ace let out a low growl, fingers curling into fists as he glared up at the person he had been arguing with just a few minutes ago. “Damn it…” He was shaking; not with fear, but with rage. A part of me wondered if his fury towards the dorm leader was going to prevent him from helping to save him, but I pushed that thought aside.

Ace wasn’t the kind of person to just let another die- at least… I didn’t think he was.

In the distance, my ringing ears could just barely make out the headmaster’s sobs. Crowley wailed, “Losing his life would be terrible! B-But even worse than that is…!”

What? What was worse? So many different scenarios were already racing through my throbbing brain, but before I could pick one to go with or figure what on earth the older man meant, my thoughts were brought to an abrupt halt.

“...AhhhhRRRGH!” Ace let out a frustrated battle cry, the boy startling me with his loud voice. He dashed forward, pointing his magical pen at the creature hovering behind and above Riddle. “EAT THIS, YOU FREAK!”

A large gust of wind blew towards them, sending them stumbling back. Everyone around us, panicked students and frantic headmaster alike, let out surprised shouts. They were even more surprised when Deuce and Grim headed towards where Ace and I were standing, determination in their expressions as they took aim with their own magic- letting lose hot blue flame and random cauldrons.

Though he was just as freaked out as the rest of us, Deuce had aimed just right and a large iron pot came crashing down onto the ink monster’s heart-shaped jar head, causing a loud _clang_ and leaving a tiny crack along the glass. It sweeped it’s giant tree side to the side, trying to blow Grim’s blue flames away, but Ace hurriedly redirected his magic to make a fiery whirlwind that blew in a spiral around the monster- stopping it from advancing towards anyone.

Riddle let out an ungodly screech, tossing his arm out to the side and deflecting several cauldrons that materialized in the air. _“What are you fools doing!?”_

This is…

I took a shaky breath, shivering as a fever started to wrack my body- leaving me both hot and cold. My heart absolutely refused to stop racing, simply pounding as hard as it could as the adrenaline continued to rush through my veins. Though numb, I found myself moving forward- body feeling more like a flesh doll being tugged around by strings.

I wasn’t sure if it was just the pain becoming too much or if I had started to dissociate from the situation in a way to cope, but regardless the case I just knew that I wasn’t quite _there_.

Cater let out a yelp when a deflected cauldron came crashing near where he and the others were standing, looking at us with wide eyes. “Whoa! Wh-What are you guys thinking!?” He stammered, hand partially outstretched towards us. “Are you crazy!?”

“He’s only in danger like this!” Grim shouted at him, pausing in his fire breathing to take a glance at the third-year. Deuce nodded firmly, glaring at the monster before us. Their gazes were uncharacteristically fierce.

“I won’t be able to sleep well with him like this.” Deuce said, agreeing with the cat monster’s words. “And, well…”

He trailed off, eyebrows furrowing as he focused on summoning another cauldron. Ace took that chance to finish his sentence, annoyance painting his voice and rage coloring his features, the wind he was using becoming stronger and causing the ink monster to slide back a little. “He still hasn’t _begged me_ for _forgiveness_ yet!”

“We fought…” I wheezed, coughing hard into my arm as I clung to the back of Ace’s jacket. “We fought… a monster like this before! W-We know… how to take it down! As… As mean as he was, R-Riddle… doesn’t deserve to die! Not... like this!”

I could taste the iron now; I bet the blood was even staining my sleeve at this point. But I didn’t care anymore. I glanced at the other boys quickly before turning my attention back to the monster, the smell of ink in the air only becoming more pungent and suffocating, the sharpness of the scent making my sinuses sting.

“You guys… can either help us or evacuate!” I told them, expression twisting into one of pain and determination. “We’re… not leaving!”

Trey was completely stunned.

“Y-You guys…” He murmured, amber eyes wide, before he shook himself out of his stupor. Grasping his magical pen firmly, he moved forward and took a stance beside us. “Alright. I can overwrite his magic with my own, but it doesn’t last for long! I’ll help as much as I can so we can finish this quickly! Headmaster, you take Cater and evacuate the students!”

“All of you just _hold on_ for a second!” Headmaster Crowley exclaimed, alarmed and more than a little angered by how we were throwing ourselves into the danger. “Are you trying to get yourselves killed!?”

“Th-That’s right!” A strained grin curled onto Cater’s face, the third-year flailing his hands about wildly as he spoke. He was scared beyond belief, and he let it show. The strawberry blond was getting more antsy with each passing second. “What’s gotten into you, Trey? You _know_ you can’t beat Riddle!”

“Only challenging guys you know you can beat…” Ace began, letting lose another barrage of wind to knock Riddle and the ink monster off balance, his voice becoming a bit gruff, “is just too lame!”

Grim nodded, glaring at them. “Yeah! It isn’t cool at all!”

“And I don’t know about you guys,” Deuce declared, speaking as loud as he could to be heard over the chaos, watching in alarm as several more rose trees were ripped out of the ground by Riddle, “but I can’t think of anything else that’ll bring him back to his senses!”

“Agreed.” Trey said. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes with furrowed brows before looking up determinedly at the transformed redhead. “I… can’t lose him. There’s still… so much I need to tell him!”

“It’s already too late to run away!” I shouted, voice hoarse. Spots were dancing in the corner of my vision, but I kept standing. “W-We’ve gotta save him while we still have a chance! A-And the only way to do that…”

I looked at the group of people next of me, the three teens and cat monster making a defensive line to protect the other students, all the while standing up to the person and creature causing all the danger. This was seriously not how the day was supposed to go. Still, there was a sense of pride welling up inside of me- seeing how far the boys have come from their self-centered ways.

I looked back at the headmaster and third-year, my expression surprisingly fierce.

“...is by working together!”

Cater shifted back-and-forth for a moment, panicked and conflicted, wanting to run yet not wanting to leave the dorm leader to death. After a few seconds he let out a curse and shook his jittery hands, pulling out his magical pen and dashing over to us with a frustrated cry. “Shit, shit, shit! I am _not_ cut out for this kind of thing!”

Headmaster Crowley looked like he wanted to reprimand us all, but thought better of it and flicked his whip-of-love, the cord smacking hard against the ground and creating a small dirt cloud. “Aaaugh, fine! As soon as I’m done evacuating the other students I’ll be back! A-And don’t you dare die; as headmaster, I forbid it!”

He took off running in the opposite direction, flicking his whip-of-love outwards and wrapping it around any trapped student in the vicinity, pulling them to him before releasing them and instructing them to run for the exit. When that didn’t work, he would cast a spell- freeing them from whatever had them caged.

Meanwhile Riddle was trembling with rage at our defiance, the darkness around him growing in evil, the smell of ink so strong now that you could _choke_ on it. He let out a roar. _“This guy, that guy… you all have some nerve-! I’ll take all your heADS OFF AT ONCE!”_

Trey was quick to throw his magical pen up, determination in his gaze and sweat falling from his brow. “No, you don’t! Doodle suit!”

The collars that had just started appearing on the many students quickly vanished, and Riddle let out another screech. _“Damn it all-! You’re in my way, Trey!”_

“El!” Ace snapped, not even looking at me. “Orders- hurry!”

What? Oh, frick.

“Why her!?” Cater yelped, alarmed that he was asking a magicless girl for help.

I suppose it only made sense for the skepticism; I knew nothing about this world and how it worked, and even less about magic. Yet the fact remained that the first-year boys relied on me for guidance, however misguided or nonsensical their faith in me was, and as such I was the one left to come up with a plan.

Frick.

Okay, okay, okay. Don’t panic. I was so jittery and anxious and dazed; it was hard to clear my mind and think. Hell, my mind didn’t get cleared at all. I just found myself spouting directions left-and-right without any clear cohesive thought at all. “S-Same as usual, b-but Cater! Clones! Decoy! Sh-Shoot magic at the jar if you can!”

Yes, yes. Gods, my skull feels like it’s going to split.

“Uh, Trey- just keep him from cutting off our heads! Or- doing anything lethal, really! I…”

What? What can I do? I won’t even be able to get near him in this state. It’s taking everything I have to remain standing, and my voice is so hoarse that if the curse doesn’t continue to make me spit blood my throat will be the cause of it pretty soon. I coughed grossly into my arm, the grip I had on Ace keeping me from collapsing then and there due to how how lightheaded I was.

“I-I need... to separate him... from the monster!” I finally managed to say, taking a breath with every other word. “I-It’s absorbing him, I think. If we can do that... and break the jar head... he’ll be fine!”

“Easier said than done!” Cater complained as he started to split into several people, three other versions of himself emerging out of his body. “Okay, me’s. You know what to do!”

“Aye-aye, sir!”

“On it!”

“Heeeey, Riddle~ over here~!”

 _“URAAAAAAAHHHHH!”_ The dorm leader arched his back and let out an ungodly screech, the sound twisted and inhuman. Several more trees ripped out of the ground, floating high in the air, and the clones went running to avoid the foliage being sent their way. _“TAKE THIS! HRAAAAH!”_

The trees rammed hard into the ground, splintering and breaking into pieces. The ground itself got rather torn up as a result, and the many versions of Cater squealed and blasted some ice shards into the ink monster’s direction. Ace and Grim worked together, continuing to restrain the ink monster as it thrashed- though it wasn’t easy. They were sweating badly, the magic casting taking all of their concentration and strength.

“H-How much magic does he have!?” Ace exclaimed.

Not much if he keeps on casting such powerful spells. If we don’t stop him now, Riddle wasn’t going to make it.

_“I SAID “OFF WITH YOUR HEADS”! “OFF”!”_

“And I said “Doodle Suit”!” Trey shouted.

Riddle screamed, thrashing his hands in the air as the darkness wafted around him, pulling up plants and weeds, and even grabbing all the debris of shattered trees and earth. _“I… AM CORRECT! DEFINITELY, ABSOLUTELY CORRECT! If not, then…”_

His eyes squeezed shut, tears of black trailing down his face as he trembled. He clenched his fists and brought them down, before swinging them in our direction with a wave of ink. His crimson orbs were shimmering with ink black tears, his face contorted in pain. A part of me wondered if he was at all conscious for this; if the sane part of him knew all the ache and chaos he was causing, but unable to stop due to the evil that had possessed him.

_“WHAT DID I ENDURE IT ALL FOR!? RAAAGH!”_

Everyone yelled, running in different directions to avoid getting hit, and in the midst of the panic Trey ended up casting another spell with his _unique magic._ My legs were shaking, trembling, and I flinched when several paint cans crash landed nearby, along with some of the small pieces of tree bark that Trey had failed to transform. All I could really hear was my own heartbeat at this point.

Was I even breathing anymore? I wasn’t sure. I just knew I was scared. Scared and horrified and _so many other things_ that I didn’t know how to name. Riddle’s manic laughter sent chills down my spine, blood running cold as the urge to flee strengthened. But I couldn’t; he would die if I did. Although, he may die even if I don’t. I…

I need to talk. To speak up. I have to… do something.

What did he say again? That he had to “endure it all”? Right. I-I can work with this. It’s fine. I just need to get my feet to move. Go. Come on. One foot in front of the other, ignore the pain in my throat and the blood on my tongue. Ignore it all, including death itself. The reaper can not touch me here. I won’t let him. Not yet.

“R-Riddle…” I choked out, fingers digging into my chest as I recalled all the dreams.

The little hand that had grabbed so desperately onto mine. Ace and Deuce and Grim were all shouting, telling me to stay back, but I couldn’t. I didn’t have the strength to yell the way they did. I have to get close- close enough for the redhead to hear me and close enough for me to pull him out of that darkness. I have to fight in a way they couldn’t.

“Riddle, it’s _okay!”_

His crimson eyes snapped over to me, and I inhaled sharply. It was like he was staring into my soul. Like he was seeing _through_ me and at someone else.

“Riddle…” My voice cracked and I coughed. I looked at him pleadingly, praying the emotion came through in my words. That it would touch him. “It’s _okay._ I know… it hurts. I know you’re _still_ hurting, a-and that’s okay. You… You talk a-as though you endured it for nothing, but that’s… that’s not true!”

I still wasn’t sure if he could see me- if he _was_ seeing me.

Puddles of ink rippled around my feet as I neared him, the tendrils of black swaying as if contemplating whether to attack me or not, and I held out my hands- tears burning my eyes as I gave him the brightest smile I could muster. “You did it to _survive._ She hurt you, and hurt you, and hurt you, a-and so many times you wanted to give in… right? But you wanted her to _see_ you.”

 _“Mo… ther…”_ Riddle blinked fiercely, sniffling as he tried to clear his vision.

One of his hands reached out as if trying to grasp mine as I drew closer, the wall of protective ink around him dropping in height. I wondered if he saw his mother in my place, if that was who he was looking at when I spoke. He looked so small with that heartbroken expression, as though he was longing for an affirmation of love and acceptance from his cruel parent.

_“Mother, why…?”_

“Y-You wanted… her to be proud. To love you. You thought… that if you could just do what she wanted… you would be free.” With each word said the harder it became to hold back my tears, the weight of his situation and this whole nightmare catching up to me. “Th-That the pain would just… go away. But it didn’t and…”

I thought about the dreams, about my own upbringing, and about how the two of us just wanted something real and unconditional. How we both were so similar in the sense that we simply longed to be loved by being ourselves, and being able to have the freedom to _be_ those true selves. Unfortunately, that freedom was taken from us.

“A-And now…” I blinked fiercely, clearing my blurry vision as the tears stung my eyes, voice cracking painfully as I choked out, “you just feel trapped.”

I was almost there. The walls of ink were starting to grow weaker and smaller, reacting to the boy’s emotional state. It gave me a clearer path to him, allowing me to stand just a few feet away. A few more steps and I would be able to take his hand, to untangle him from this monster that desired to devour him whole.

 _“I-I want…”_ Riddle’s lips curled back and he sobbed, pulling his hand back and tangling his fingers into his hair, shaking his head fervently. _“I wanted just a few things! I-I did… everything she said… studied and practiced and learned… and she still…”_

He ripped his fingers out of his hair and threw his head back, body arching as he let loose a heart wrenching cry.

_“She still-! UWAAAAAHH!”_

Trey flinched and the real Cater cried out to me, the ink monster reeling out of the fiery blue flames and swinging the rose tree it held with as much force as it had. It sensed a threat and had to get rid of it, not at all liking the way I was targeting Riddle’s vulnerable heart. One second I was standing there, staring at the redhead with distressed brown eyes, and the next he was suddenly gone from my sight.

Excruciating pain erupted in my torso, the world passing by me in a blur of color. There was screaming, though who it belonged to I wasn’t entirely sure, and then my entire backside was throbbing with sharp pain- body thudding into something repeatedly about three times before coming to a halt. Things went dark, signaling a momentary black out of my consciousness, and when I awoke I had no voice- mouth opened in a silent scream as all the pain came crashing down on me at once, my eyes squeezed tightly shut.

Before I could even get a chance to recover I was struggling to avoid drowning in my own blood, sitting up as much as I could to gasp and spit up red liquid, chest heaving as I fought to get even an _ounce_ of air in my lungs. I couldn’t feel any of my limbs, entire body filled with _so much pain_ that there was nothing left for me to be able to control.

Petals danced on my tongue and red stained my clothes, and I found myself choking on saliva and iron as I cried- dazed and hurt and lost as to what the hell just happened. Several cuts lined my arms and face, and it took every bit of willpower to even twitch my fingers. My vision cleared after several suffocating moments of blinking and I realized I had been tossed through _two_ hedges, a human-shaped hole in the walls of the maze, and I had gotten stuck in the middle of the third hedge. The foliage was greatly destroyed now as a result.

Every part of me tingled and burned and ached, and when I had finally managed to untangle myself from the hedge I fell to my knees- throwing up all the contents in my stomach. My throat has never felt more raw and sore, and I wiped the blood off my lips as I staggered onto my feet.

It was stupid, it was selfish, it was insane.

_But only one person was going to die today._

“R-Riddle…!”

_And that person... is me._

I grabbed onto the branches of the ruined hedges for support, body so weak it was close to giving out on me entirely. I was trembling so bad due to the pain and numbness and adrenaline, and I _knew_ this was my last chance. I had to succeed this time.

So I was forcing myself beyond reason, surpassing my limits like a mother hysterically lifting a car off her child, and dear _gods_ did it hurt.

I ended up tripping on my way through the last hedge, crawling partway back to the group as I spat out more blood and petals. Something was seriously wrong with my ribcage, I think, because…

_Shit._

Moving, breathing, even thinking was a work out. I can’t even describe the pain I’m feeling anymore. I just kept going regardless. My fingers dug into the dirt and I choked, looking up to the see the jar head halfway cracked. A few more good hits ought to do it, but Riddle… he was looking even paler than before.

“I won’t…”

Ace and one of the many versions of Cater let out a curse and almost- _almost_ \- pissed their pants when they saw me crawling my way along the grass. Deuce and Grim looked straight-up horrified, and Trey- well, he looked like he was witnessing all his worst nightmares at the same time. Between the evil berserker mode Riddle was in and my own sorry state, it was quite a scene.

“I won’t… let you die.” Fucking hell. I hate this. Fuck this world. I don’t even care about my language anymore; life is a _bitch_ and if I was going to die I might as well go out my own way. Fuck this shit. I grunted and let out a silent wail as I pushed myself up, face cringing as I wrapped an arm around my abdomen where my damaged ribs lied. I staggered forward, limping. “I won’t… let it kill you.”

Fuck breathing. Fuck these lungs. Fuck whatever was wrong with my left ankle. Fuck this useless body that doesn’t let me do anything but be a burden. Fuck the universe for dragging me into this hellhole without giving me anything to help survive it! And, most importantly, fuck the person who cursed me! I hope they live a horrible life.

“I won’t let it, because… because..”

The whirling of flames around the monster were going crazy, Ace and Grim putting their all into casting. They were starting to look ill, growing weaker with the more magic they used, and the Cater clones were beginning to slow down as exhaustion kicked in. Even the original Cater was worn out, drained from having to simultaneously control the clones and cast magic. A shard of ice got stuck in the glass jar head, giving Deuce some extra help as he tiredly dropped a few more cauldrons on it.

In their frustration, the whirlwind duo sent the flames to envelope Riddle as well- hoping it would knock him out after enough pain. His cries reached my ears and I dragged my feet over there, ignoring everyone’s calls to stop. “Riddle!”

It was hoarse and raw and weak, but I shouted. I trudged through the puddles of ink that fought to keep me back, instinct taking over and giving the power to move faster, to battle the darkness that dared to keep me back, the desperation running through my veins allowing me to reach him. I snatched his wrist with a pained cry, the sob stuck in my throat as I felt tendrils of black curl around my legs and waist.

Riddle jolted and looked at me in shock, my actions catching his attention, and then I reached out with my other hand- grabbing firm hold of his own and tugging him towards me with all I had. He yelped and stared at my face with wide crimson eyes, the touch of his ink-covered hands feeling unnatural and inhuman.

The goopy black substance that made the ink monster what it was surrounded us, swirling about our forms. My feet were all but swallowed in the puddle of black.

“You’re not alone!”

 _“What…?”_ He blinked several more times. For a split second I thought his irises had returned to their usual storm grey, but then they were back to crimson again. _“Mother… no… Eleanora?”_

Yes… that was my name, wasn’t it? Eleanora Quince.

Growing up it always felt like I was easily forgotten, constantly getting replaced by others in friendships. I lived most of my life believing I was hated and hating my self, despite my overly loving mother. My father, on the other hand, was stern and placed so many expectations upon me and my siblings, believing us capable of so much because of us being _his_ kids. Then I got sick, but those expectations never changed. They only strengthened.

And because I was my mother’s daughter, my aunt viewed me as nothing more than trouble. When I became sick, that view worsened into thinking me as someone who got spoiled by their caring mother, the woman convinced that I was being selfish and lazy and that I was making everything up. All blame for any situation would be cast onto me, and whenever her two-faced daughter was involved _I_ was automatically made the antagonist.

I would be yelled at and hit, and beat and smacked and blamed, and because my mother was at work and because I was too scared that I would never be believed if I told her, as adults never listened to me, she never learned about a thing. I...

I never really had a chance to be anything except useless. When I was finally starting to become someone I got sent here to this world, where I’m more useless than ever before. I found friends, twisted as they were, but they were kind. They were so _kind_ and _generous_ and _it hurt_ because I’ve already grown so attached to them.

Desperately lonely and desperately longing for affection and comfort, I let myself get attached. It was so stupid and selfish of me, and while they could be selfish themselves a lot of the time it didn’t change the fact that still _cared more than anyone else_ I’ve known. They protected me and helped me, and don’t even seem to care how much of a burden I’ve been. They went out of their way to be with me. To be my friend.

Hell, at this point we’re not even really normal friends, are we? We’re best friends.

We’ve been through thick-and-thin in such a short amount of time, and now… I was going to die. I was going to leave them behind.

Eleanora Quince. Heh. Seriously, what kind of name was that?

It’s like something out of a fairytale. Eleanora is supposed to mean _Shining Light_ or _Bright One,_ yet here I am literally surrounded by darkness. Despite all my effort, despite all the talent and skills I spent years honing, I’ve never amounted to anything. I remained a disappointment, even in this new world.

But at least… until death claims me… I can do my best to save Riddle.

I’ll twist this dark fairytale into my own story. A villain is just a victim whose story hasn’t been told, after all, and I refuse to give up and let this child suffer any longer. I’ll use what little life I have left in me to pull him out of the dark and into the light, just as my name suggests.

Riddle Rosehearts…

“You did _everything_ right.”

He choked upon hearing that, my words soft and pained and bittersweet, a smile gentle on my face despite how the tears falling were hot against my cheeks. His hands shifted to wrap around mine, his fingers squeezing my own in a fashion very reminiscent of the little boy I had met once upon a dream.

“She was the one who was wrong. You _deserve_ love, Riddle, and you deserve to _be_ loved. You…”

I had to pause, the world starting to blur for a second as my consciousness tried to fade. I blinked rapidly to snap myself out of it, foot sliding forward as the tendrils around me lost their strength. I removed one of my hands from Riddle’s and cupped his face, thumb brushing the ink on his cheek and watching as it started to slowly drip away.

“You deserve to… to eat a cake or tart on your birthday… and to go outside and play. To be you. You’re a person, Riddle, not a machine, a-and the anger you feel…” I took a deep breath, shuddering as I coughed into my shoulder, some more blood painting my uniform red. “The anger you feel right now is because you _know_ you deserve it. You know you were treated wrongly. S-So please…”

The ink monster roared as another cauldron rammed against it, hitting the ice shard just right and causing the glass to shatter. I tugged very gently on Riddle’s hands to pull him closer and the boy sobbed, _real_ tears falling from his eyes and washing away the remaining ink markings on his face.

“Stop this,” I murmured quietly, “before you become just like her and treat the others wrongly, too…”

_“I-I just…”_

His arms wrapped around my waist, hugging me tight as he buried his face in my neck, and it took everything I had to bite my tongue to avoid screaming. My insides screeched and ached, the ribs in my torso wailing at the abuse. Trey was watching the scene take place nervously, uncertainty and guilt in his eyes as Riddle struggled to come down from his unhinged, berserker state.

_“I just wanted to make her happy. But… But now I…”_

The black crown fell from his head, and I was vaguely aware of the darkness around us dissipating, but not before the ink that had gathered in the jar came pouring out, the black that had made the goopy ink monster starting to tumble below towards us. Riddle sobbed, pulling at my clothes as he sunk down, crying into my chest as my hands rested awkwardly around him, petting his hair and cradling him gingerly- the boy as fragile as glass in his current condition.

_“I don’t even know who I am anymore.”_

“El!” Ace’s shout rang out through the clearing.

_“Mo… ther…”_

I looked up just in time to see the ink raining down on us, swallowing us whole and delving us into a land of darkness.

…

Ugh, what just…? Right. I groaned, but a spike of pain in my throat quickly told me all I needed to know. A hand shot up to grab at the rose in my mouth, greatly alarmed by the fact that I was in another dream. I choked, relieved to find that the rest of the pain my _real_ body was in didn’t follow into this sleeping realm. Maybe I would die semi-peacefully after all.

But… where was this place? It was different than all the others.

Actually, hold on- no. This more closely resembled that one office in which I saw the child version of…

Riddle!?

My eyes went wide at the little boy in question, seeing him trying to plead with a woman- who was most definitely his mother- to have a real tart on his birthday, only to be quickly shot down as she began to list all the reasons as to why that would be a _terrible_ idea and how detrimental sweets are to his health.

 _“For so long, a strawberry tart was all that I wanted to eat.”_ I heard a familiar voice say to the side, and I whirled around to see the teenage form of Riddle standing up- the boy untouched by evil, dressed in his Unbirthday party clothes. He stood next to me, observing the scene with a solemn expression. _“They would always be on display in the cake shops around town. Tarts… that looked like they were decorated with jewels.”_

We watched as the scene shifted, scenery graying and fading out like a distant memory. A woman stood in a dining hall, arms full of books that she set down on a table in front of the red-haired child. Alarm quickly flashed across his young face, but he didn’t say a word as she scooted them all towards him.

 _“We’re going to end your classic magical studies here for today. You have until tomorrow to review the magical ethics that you’ve learn earlier and to get through page fifty of your language philosophy text.”_ She listed off is next activities one-by-one, all having to do with education. It was almost as if she were reading off an invisible schedule, one that was packed with work and little-to-no free time. _“To that end, I’ll give you an hour to study for your next potions lesson.”_

 _“Yes, Mother…”_ The little boy nodded, obviously overwhelmed but doing his best to please her.

_“Good. I have an errand to run, so I’ll be back in an hour.”_

This was… his past. Wasn’t it? I’ve never seen it in such detail like this. Before I had only gotten glimpses, with only a comment or two from the boy himself when he realized he could speak to me in these dreams. I wondered why I was seeing it now, and if it had anything to do with his transformation or the way the ink had spilled over the both of us after the jar had broken.

The real Riddle sighed, closing his eyes and folding his arms over his chest, bothered by the memories in front of us. Yet he continued to speak, explaining each one to me for a reason I could not fathom. Did he even know I was here, or was it because he knew we met before in the dreams that he was telling all this to me?

Did he feel as if he needed to explain his awful behavior?

_“My every moment was crammed to the brim… with every possible discipline. Time spent learning was extended until I could do it properly, and I would be punished if I failed. To me… this was what “normal” felt like. This is what I thought life was. At least, until…”_

He opened his eyes, the storm grey color relaxing me in more ways than one now that they were that terrifying crimson. I turned to follow his gaze, watching a vaguely familiar scene take place.

_“...they appeared.”_

A rock hit a window and the little boy at the table jumped, sliding out of his seat in confusion when it happened two more times. Opening the window curiously, he looked down in shock at the two children grinning up at him. The one with green hair smiled, pleasantly surprised. _“He actually came!”_

 _“I told ya he would.”_ The pink-haired one with a tail said, beaming mischievously up at the little redhead. _“Hey, Hey! Come play with us!”_

 _“Wh-Who are you?”_ Little Riddle stammered, alarmed.

_“I’m Chen’ya, and this is Trey! Let’s play croquet!”_

_“I-I can’t.”_ Riddle stammered, baffled by this encounter. He glanced nervously at the desk full of books and work pages. _“I have to keep studying. This is my self-study time.”_

_“Self-study means you choose what you study! My grand-paw says playing is a kind of study, too.”_

Little Trey pushed up his glasses, glancing at Chen’ya and then up at Riddle, offering an encouraging smile. _“Will you come down for a bit? Please? We just want to be friends.”_ That got to him. The child version of Riddle faltered, glancing behind him one more time as he pondered the aspect of having his first two friends.

 _“...J-Just for a bit.”_ He relented. He was about to close the window when Little Trey spoke up again.

_“Can we ask for your name?”_

The gentleness of his tone surprised the boy.

 _“R… Riddle,”_ He answered, gazing down at them with big eyes, _“Riddle Rosehearts.”_

A sad smile spread across the older Riddle’s lips, the boy beside me watching the scene with melancholic eyes. _“The time I spent playing with Trey and Chen’ya had been so much fun. I learned new things, played new games...”_

We watched as the boys chased each other around, laughing and goofing off, and as they practiced croquet. They even made towers of cards after several games of Go Fish and Old Maid.

_“They taught me so much. From that day on, during my self-study time, without telling my mother… I left my room.”_

A hazy image of a small Riddle sneaking out of his house was shown. He was walking around town with his new friends, and Little Chen’ya gasped upon hearing some new information.

_“Eh!? Riddle, you’ve never had a strawberry tart?”_

He nodded sheepishly. _“Mother says it’s like poison, so… I can’t.”_

 _“Well,”_ Little Trey thought about it, _“you probably shouldn’t eat TOO much of it…”_

He then stepped forward, patting his redheaded friend on the shoulder and pointing at a nearby store with a grin.

_“My family owns a cake shop, so why don’t we go there and eat some? They’re super good!”_

_“Huh? B-But…”_

_“One piece will be fine!”_ Little Trey exclaimed, not at all understanding what he was worrying about.

Little Chen’ya laced his hands together behind his head, practically salivating at the thought of sweets. _“I could go for a whole one right about_ ** _meow...”_**

Oh my.

They entered the shop and before long they were sitting at a table with a beautiful pastry in front of them. From beside me, the real Riddle sighed wistfully. _“Atop a pure white plate was a brilliantly red strawberry tart. In my eyes, it shined brighter than any jewel. The first bite was wonderfully sweet, better than anything I’d ever tasted. I savored each bite of that tart, getting lost in the flavor. So much so… I lost track of time.”_

A woman’s shriek caught my attention and I turned back to the scene, eyes growing wide when I saw his mother standing in front of him- the child version of him now sporting a bright red mark on his cheek from when she had slapped him.

 _“How could you!?”_ She cried. _“How could you skip your studies!? And to do what- go outside and eat a mound of sugar? Those two children instigated it, didn’t they?”_

Her expression hardened as she paced the room, fingers tapping her arms as she thought through what happened. She came to a halt, whirling around and glaring at her son, not even giving him a chance to answer.

_"That’s it. I won’t allow you to spend time with those trouble makers ever again!”_

Little Riddle started to sob, clinging at her skirt and begging for her to change her mind. _“I’m sorry! I’m sorry, Mother! I-I won’t do it ever again, so please-!”_

She yanked her skirt away, staring down at him with cold eyes and smacking at his hands when they tried to reach towards her again. _“Enough of this! This is because YOU broke the rules.”_ The woman let out a sigh, breathing shakily as she raised a hand to her forehead. _“I should have NEVER given you so much free time. I clearly have to keep a better watch on you…”_

Oh my gods.

 _“If I broke the rules…”_ The real Riddle began, speaking quietly, his eyes focused on the way the mother surrounded his child self with book after book, handing him a new schedule, _“my time for fun was completely taken away. I would lose everything I had. That’s why… the rules my mother makes are absolute. I have to follow them.”_

His eyes squeezed shut, the teen grabbing at his arms to hold himself.

_“In this town… she is the most respected. That makes her correct. But…”_

He turned to face me, tears welling up in his storm grey orbs. It was then I knew; he was aware of me. He knew I existed in this space. And he was staring at me… as if I had all the answers he was searching for. Riddle stepped closer, holding himself tighter.

 _“Tell me… please!”_ He begged. _“Wh-Why does my chest hurt like this? Just on my birthday would be fine- just once… I want to eat a bunch of tarts. I-I want to play outside for hours, I want to make more and more friends!”_

I flinched when he reached out, grabbing me and digging his fingers into my arms, the boy trembling as the tears streamed down his face.

 _“Tell me, Mama…”_ He whimpered, not even looking at me anymore, the boy lowering his head. He wasn’t even speaking to me. It wasn’t _me_ he had seen. His forehead rested on my shoulder, sobbing as he pleaded with the mother who wasn’t even there. _“What rules should I follow… to make this pain go away?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As it turns out the tree thing I mentioned last chapter DID come to pass. Woo! I-I mean, oh noes... T_T 
> 
> El isn't gonna last much longer. Wonder how she's gonna survive this? Hmm. I'm a little surprised at how protective Ace has gotten. I always planned on Deuce being the more protective one, but Ace is really taking over. Huh. Also TREEEYYYYYY. I love Trey. So much. And RIDDLEEE MY SOOON!!!!!!!! IT'S GONNA BE OKAY!!!! I made myself sad writing this chapter, yo. XD 
> 
> I had that villain quote saved at the top of my docs for like half of this fic waiting for a good chance to use it. I don't remember where I got it from, but I thought it was freaking great and would work well for a fic about, well, you know, VILLAINS. And I finally had the opportunity to use! Woo! Hopefully this battle reached your expectations. I'm not the best at writing fight scenes, but I gave it my all. Let me know what you guys think? Pretty please? 
> 
> Thanks for reading! And have a wonderful day/night wherever you are, you fantastic peoples! <3


	24. The Heartfelt Truth

I could not describe to you what I was feeling- too much was flooding my senses at once. The dream had ended and the sobbing redhead disappeared from my grasp, and the next thing I knew there were people panicking; the voices mixing together as they shouted and pleaded for Riddle and I to wake up. When I did open my eyes, my body instinctively tried to get into a sitting position.

A mistake, as my battered and possibly broken ribs cried out at the slightest movement, and then I was yelling, a scream falling past my lips before I rolled onto my side and started hyperventilating, tears falling uncontrollably as I gasped and coughed and tried to calm down, the heavy breaths only making the pain I felt worse. I ended up vomiting sometime during this, the group of teenagers screeching at the sight, and they watched in horror as blood and ink and stomach acid spilled out onto the ground.

My sinuses felt like they were on fire- and the grossness I was throwing up wasn’t helping me much either. My best guess was that when the ink monster had been defeated, the waterfall of black that had enveloped me and Riddle had caused me to accidentally swallow some of the ink. Overall, it was disgusting. Rancid. The taste only made me gag harder. The tears and sobbing added to the pain, and by the time I had finished throwing up my insides I was simply dry heaving- nothing left in me to expel.

I think a pair of hands were holding my head, but when I felt someone else try to place a hand on my back I recoiled violently, another cry of pain ripping out of my abused throat as I nearly collapsed back down onto the ground. The person who had been holding my head caught me, stopping me from falling into the puddle of gross, and I choked back another wail- tightening my jaw so hard you could hear me struggling to even my breathing as I sucked air in-and-out through my teeth.

I couldn’t see it, but I could feel it; the way bruises of every color were most likely spread along my entire back, painting the pale flesh like it was some sort of nightmare-ish canvas. I had been slammed through several rose hedges at a terrifying pace earlier, and from the looks of it my one ankle had been badly twisted. There was no way I was going to be able to walk on it.

Not now. Not after the majority of the adrenaline had faded away.

_H-Hurts… I-It all hurts…!_

Wait. Where is he? Where’s Riddle?

_Agh, it hurts!_

I can’t- okay, okay; I need to calm down.

I knew that, yet I couldn’t handle this pain. There was too much of it at once. This angle is also awful and isn’t helping with my ribs at all. I couldn’t really tell who was holding me, my vision blurring in-and-out of focus as my consciousness tried to fade again. I just saw a big blue-and-white blob. I smacked the person’s chest weakly, pushing him away, and let out another small cry as my back hit the grassy ground.

For a moment, I was winded.

In my panic I found myself flashing back to the time several years ago when I had bruised my ribs from coughing too much, the orders my father gave me flashing to mind when I had started hyperventilating- a sad movie having caused me to get emotional and cry, which led to the attack. My fingers dug into the dirt as I straightened my legs, head tilting back as my eyes squeezed tightly shut, lips curled back as the tears continued to fall.

Just breathe, just breathe- stop panicking! Focus! In-and-out! Not so fast. Relax! I have to… to relax… _I have to calm down!_ Going into shock… is not… good. Everything is fine. I’m safe. Safe, safe, safe. It’s okay. It’s gonna be okay.

After what felt like eternity, I was able to breathe through my nose again, chest rising and falling a bit slower than before. Heart isn’t… pounding as fast. Okay.

Good. Very good.

I’m… fine.

“...El?” Ah. I can actually understand what the voices are saying now. Who is that? Ace? Ah, I think Deuce was the one who caught me earlier. Awesome. I can rationalize now, too. Progress. Blinking fiercely, eyes burning and feeling incredibly swollen and puffy, I opened them and stared tiredly at the two boys hovering over me. “You…”

It was probably my imagination, but it almost looked like the two of them had gotten a little misty eyed- as though they themselves had been crying. Though it was hard, I flashed a shaky smile and turned my head, blinking a few more to times to clear my vision- mind going blank temporarily as my consciousness nearly faded again. Where was… Riddle? I already forgot. Wait, did I even know in the first place?

Oh. He’s there. Next to Trey and Cater. It… kind of looks like he’s breathing.

“D… Did…” My voice was raspy, gravelly even; so much so to the point it didn’t even really sound like me anymore. “Did we win?”

Trey choked at that question, and Cater looked like he was about to have an emotional breakdown. Deuce, on the other hand, seemed unable to hold back any longer- the emotions spilling out at full force as he began to tremble, his shoulders shaking as he hunched over and sobbed, heading hanging low and facing the ground. Ace stared for a minute, blinking, before raising a hand up and brushing his bangs out of his face, inhaling sharply, the boy processing what just occurred.

“Y-Yeah…” The ginger stated, dumbfounded, a strange sort of _rawness_ in his voice. He swallowed thickly, sniffling a little, seeming to have trouble believing something. “We… won.”

“Riddle is… alive, then?”

“Yes.” Trey spoke then, sitting beside the unconscious boy, waiting patiently for him to wake. He ducked his head, pushing up his glasses, staring at the redhead with misty amber eyes. “You… we… everyone… Riddle is…”

He was having trouble speaking, his voice cracking and falling into a quietness every time he spoke. In his frustration, Trey pulled his glasses off and wiped at his face, fingers raising up to tangle in his hair- the hat he was wearing nearly falling away in the process.

“Riddle’s alive. H-He just… needs to wake up first.”

“Good.” I murmured, eyes sliding shut as I leaned my head back down, exhaustion growing even stronger the more I remained still. Talking was taking so much out of me. “That’s… good. Hah…” 

“Human!” Who was… oh, right. Monster cat. Oww, he’s shouting right next to my ear. “Don’t you dare die! You’re not allowed to!”

“I’m just… tired, Grim.”

So very, very tired. Everything hurts. I just want to sleep. I don’t care about anything else right now. Riddle was alive, everyone else was okay. So just… let me sleep.

Suddenly, the dorm leader groaned. Trey jolted, everyone except me whirling around to look at him. “Riddle!?” The green-haired man exclaimed, hovering over him. He placed a hand on his shoulder, shaking him lightly. “Riddle, can you hear me? Riddle!”

I carefully turned my head, staring with half-lidded eyes as the redhead gasped and sat up, shooting awake in a panic. Ace looked on in surprise, though he didn’t look very happy to see the redhead conscious. He still didn’t forgive the way the dorm leader had acted earlier. “His eyes actually opened…!”

Cater let out a heavy sigh, slumping over in exhaustion. “For real… Ellie was bad enough, but we were starting to think you wouldn’t ever wake! It was seriously agony…”

“Wh… What…” Riddle wheezed, struggling to catch his breath and recall the earlier events. “What did I…?"

Trey carefully wrapped an arm around his shoulders, scooting closer and helping the boy remain upright. Headmaster Crowley walked into the area at that moment, observing the wreckage with a horrified face, before turning to see us all. He hurriedly rushed over, slowing to a walk and squatting down beside the rest of the boys.

“He came back to his senses…” The headmaster breathed. “Thank goodness.”

Trey nodded in agreement, incredibly relieved that his friend had survived and was back to his usual self. With a small smile, he squeezed the boy’s shoulder, looking down at him with a soft expression. “Don’t think too much on it, Riddle. You should focus on getting some sleep.”

Ace was not happy with that. “Quit babying him already! It’s no wonder he went berserk after one argument! Honestly, stop coddling him and let him grow up!”

The third-year knew he was right, and couldn’t bring himself to try and speak a defense. Trey simply closed his eyes and turned away, guilt written all over his face. Ace then looked around the destroyed garden, even glaring at some of the students who had come back to check on things when the chaos got a little too quiet. A few had their phones out, most likely taking pictures. Headmaster Crowley quickly ushered them away.

“The garden is a complete disaster!” Ace exclaimed, annoyed. “We were in serious trouble! And- freaking hell- _look!”_

I had closed my eyes again, so it wasn’t until he started to continue his rant that I realized he was pointing and talking about me.

“Look at El! He could have killed her! He _almost did_ kill her! Did you not see her get hit with that tree!?”

No one said anything. I opened my eyes, using all my willpower to remain awake, and debated if I had to find a way to sit up and stop this from escalating any further. Damn it. Taking a deep breath and bracing myself for what was surely going to send me into another attack, I carefully rolled onto my side and hissed, pushing myself up with my arm and letting out a small whimper.

“I… I’m… fine.” I bit out, flinching as I placed a hand gingerly against my abdomen. The boys and headmaster all looked at me, clearly not believing a single word I said. I seriously must look like shit if they’re giving me those kinds of horrified, baffled expressions. I felt sort of lightheaded. “It's just a… flesh wound.”

Ace stared at me, mouth agape, before he shook his head incredulously at me, eyes wide. “You’re kidding. El, I _watched you_ get _flung through the air_ by a _tree._ You are _not_ okay! Y-You just- two minutes ago you were throwing up _blood!_ And ink! A-and rose petals! Rose petals were just-”

He made frantic gestures with his hands near his mouth, as if trying to emphasize his point while simultaneously demonstrating the way I had hurled up flora.

“All over! He hit you so hard you _swallowed_ rose petals! That’s not okay! Or fine! Or a flesh wound! Stop freaking pretending! This isn’t just a breathing issue; this is you _nearly dying_ by being hit with a mother freaking _tree!”_ He pointed at me and the puddle on the ground, still having trouble coming to terms with everything. I couldn’t really blame him; I was too, but I was also just sort of done with the world right now. I just wanted to sleep. “Y-You were- we thought-”

Oh. Oh no.

Ace’s voice cracked and the tears came flooding out. He tangled his right hand into his hair, pulling on it as he let out a frustrated cry and punched the ground with his left fist. “We thought you were _dead!_ It didn’t… It didn’t even look like you were breathing o-or alive, and there was so much blood… and… the dorm leader wasn’t waking up either…”

He sobbed, hand hovering over his face as he tried hide such an uncharacteristic expression from us.

I was… stunned. I… I honestly didn’t know how to react to that. There was this… sense of apathy built up inside me, caused from all the pain I was feeling, leaving me unable to properly feel emotion in this moment, but… that almost brought me back. Seeing such a stubborn, bull-headed, two-faced jerk who hated talking about anything emotional just… utterly melt down in front of so many people was…

Heart shattering. So much guilt rose up in me as a result, washing away the wave of _nothing_ that had taken over. I was still tired- oh so very much so- but now there was guilt along with it. Guilt and heartache, and almost regret.

Almost, I say, because I didn’t actually regret trying to save Riddle.

I didn’t like how hurt I got in the process of it, but if Riddle died and I didn’t try to do anything to help, to not use the knowledge I gained from the dreams, I would hate myself forever. Choosing _not_ to take action, rather than to do something to help, would be what would truly cause me to regret what happened. But no- I took a gamble, faced the consequences for it, and accepted it.

Would I be petty over everything that happened later if I, by some miracle, survived the day? Yeah. Would that mean that I regretted saving that sad, lonely child’s life? No.

Because, sometimes, even when the world is dark… and you have lost hope… kindness is enough. Riddle hardly knew kindness because of his mother, and as a result lost the only warmth he had in his life when she forbade him from seeing the only friends he had. I honesty wasn’t even expecting to make this far, but the words I said seemed to have worked.

My plan succeeded. Yet, at what cost?

“...I’m sorry.” I said, lowering my head and nibbling on my bottom lip as I fought the tears that were trying to well up. If I started crying again, I don’t think I would recover from it this time. Ace peered at me through his fingers, sniffling, expression contorted in what was supposed to be anger but actually just came out as a concerned and frustrated pout as he strangled back his sobs. “I just… wanted to help.”

I could feel the gazes of everyone on me, even from Riddle himself as he took in my battered form with horrified eyes. The most intense gaze, however, came from the headmaster. He was staring, something flickering in those golden glowing orbs of his, though what he was thinking I was unsure. When it looked like he might speak, Deuce beat him to it- the emotional teen scooting closer and placing a hand on my shoulder, the teen leaning down and resting his forehead against his knuckles.

I looked down at him in surprise, eyebrows raising high at the action. He was making sure not to put too much weight on me so as to avoid hurting me, but he was showing off such a vulnerable side with that behavior. I think the only time he showed such an exposed part of himself was when he revealed his past to me.

How… long ago was that, again? So much has happened; it feels like forever since I first met these boys.

“You… scared us.” Deuce murmured, voice so quiet it was near impossible to hear. His fingers tugged at my ruined jacket. His other hand was gripping the hem of said jacket, the teen clinging to me like a small child. “W-We really thought…”

I couldn’t say anything to that. I never thought I would survive the end of the battle, nonetheless wake up from that final dream of Riddle, so hearing them talk about how panicked and worried they were over the possibility of my death… gods, it hurt. It messed with me on so many different levels.

They really did have no idea about my curse. Ace thought I had accidentally swallowed petals from when I got hit with the rose tree earlier. When I did die, they would have no idea what caused it; they would probably just think it was from my injuries. I…

_I’m so sorry._

Though it caused me pain, I lifted a hand up- maneuvering it around the teen leaning against me- and rested it on his head. Gently petting his hair, I looked at him with sad eyes, unable to bring myself to try and say words of comfort. It would only be false. Sniffling loudly, Deuce pulled away and wiped his face off with his sleeve.

“Y-You guys are alive though! So…” He cleared his throat, shaking his head. “Yeah. I-It was a pretty crazy situation we were in, what with… the Overblot and all.”

“Yeah!” Grim snapped, turning to glare at Riddle from his spot next to my leg. “Bottling up your stress isn’t admirable! Look where it’s gotten us!”

Riddle stared at him and the others, before his storm grey eyes landed on me. His lips curled back and he shifted, hands curling up around the bunched up part of his top. “I… I-I’m sorry. I…” His gaze flickered to Ace and then he squeezed his eyes tightly shut, voice quivering as his eyes welled up with tears. “I… I just… I mean… I-I _really_ did… want to eat that mont blanc.”

Everyone paused, and Ace looked at him weirdly. “Huh?”

“The roses are fine white,” The normally strict dorm leader admitted softly, shrinking lower underneath our gazes, his eyes unable to meet anyone’s stare, “a-and the flamingos are fine being pink. I like putting honey in my tea more than sugar cubes, and I… like milk tea more than lemon tea. I-I wanted to chat more with everyone while we ate, and spend more time with you all, and…”

His head rose up and he leaned back, his lips curling as he started to sob.

“A-And I… I…” His mouth parted out in a childish wail, the boy practically shouting the words out. “I really wanted to be friends with Eleanora! I didn’t _want_ to hurt her! I didn’t- I didn’t mean- _what I said earlier-_ I just-! _I’m sorry!”_

Oh my gods.

Cater was wide-eyed, watching the scene take place. “I can’t believe… Riddle is… crying like an infant…”

“O-Oi!” Ace tried to say, startled. “Y-You’re not forgiven just because you’re crying!”

Deuce sent him a look, wiping away another tear that tried to fall. “You just… refuse to read the mood, don't you!? Ah, Eleanora, wait- you shouldn’t move yet!” The boy was more than a little alarmed when I tried to crawl over to the redhead, watching as pain contorted my expression, my limp foot dragging behind me.

“It’s… okay.” I choked out, reaching out to the dorm leader with a trembling smile, hand resting on his head. Riddle instantly leaned into the touch, reaching out like a needy child and grabbing onto my clothes as he continued to sob into my chest. The pain was excruciating, but I managed. I was starting to get a little used to being in such constant agony. Everyone watched with wide eyes as I consoled the boy, petting his hair in a way a mother would. “I’m… not mad.”

“I’m sorry! I-I’m sorry, I didn’t- I didn’t mean it! I really didn’t!”

“It’s okay.”

“I-I didn’t mean any of it! I-I was- that day when you invited me to eat lunch with you, I-! I was really happy! A-And when I saw that you came to the party the other day, I just… I just wanted to speak with you! I wanted to talk about all sorts of things! I didn’t mean any of those hurtful words I said, I swear! I-I think you’re wonderful! Wonderful and kind and pretty, a-and-! And I… I wanted to get to know you more! I really didn’t mean it… please… believe me...”

That… was not where I was expecting this to go. It was a little weird and sort of sounded like a confession, but I chose to ignore it. “I-It’s really okay, Riddle.”

Man he was shivering. Frick. He was alive, but he was super pale. I stopped holding him long enough to take off my tattered jacket- a painful process, but hey; it worked. While dirtied, it was still warm from me wearing it.

“H-Here.” With Trey helping, we were able to place it over the sobbing boy’s shoulders. I could taste iron, feeling the liquid bubble the back of my throat onto my tongue again. With a small wince, I ran my fingers through his hair and carefully brushed some tears off his cheeks. “There we go… much better. It’s gonna be okay.”

“I’m sorry…” Riddle whimpered, arms around my waist as he buried his face further into my chest. “I’m so sorry…”

“Hey.” Trey spoke, voice gentle as he reached out to help comfort the dorm leader. “I should be apologizing, too.”

His eyebrows furrowed and he drew his lips into a fine line, watching as Riddle shifted just slightly to look at him, the redhead sniffling at him. He didn’t let go of me. “Wh… What?”

The third-year took a deep breath. “All these years… I knew you were suffering, but I didn’t do a single thing about it. I pretended not to notice.”

Riddle only seemed to cry harder at that. He blinked furiously, trying to keep a clear vision of Trey in sight, and I flinched when his grip on me tightened. The boy didn’t seem to notice, too overwhelmed by all his pent up emotions. I said nothing. Trey fixed the boy with a stern glare, frowning deeply at him as he decided to start trying to atone for his past mistake.

“That’s why, from now on… I’m going to start speaking up. Riddle,” Trey said firmly, “the way you’re doing things is _wrong._ You have to properly apologize to everyone- the dorm residents, Eleanora and Grim. Everyone.”

It was heart wrenching to the see the way Riddle reached out with one hand, grasping onto Trey’s sleeve- the boy clinging to the both of us like we were his lifelines. “I-I’m sorry,” He sobbed, “I’m sorry…!”

Riddle then turned towards the rest of the group, wailing out apologies loudly and repeatedly.

“I’m _sorry!”_

Ace huffed, crossing his legs and folding his arms over his chest. “There is… _something_ I wanted to say if you ever apologized for what happened.” The teen admitted, making a face. On the verge of passing out, my eyes nearly slid shut when I tried to look at him. It was only thanks to his sudden shout that I woke back up. “No way in _hell!”_

He glared fiercely at the distraught redhead, everyone left completely shell-shocked by his shout.

“Words aren’t gonna fix this mess! After everything that’s happened, I am _not_ just gonna forgive you like that! No way! Hell nah! Not even if you begged!”

“Y-You’re really gonna say that right now!?” Cater yelped. “Seriously!? Dude!”

Ace stood up, furious, hands waving wildly about as he spoke. “Why _wouldn’t_ I!? We’ve been put through the wringer! Did you already forget what happened to El!? Look at her- and he has the audacity to _cling_ to her like that! Like, what the hell!? Frick, man, that’s not even mentioning the mont blanc and all the work we put into it! El nearly had her head ripped off by an angry lion man when we went to collect those chestnuts, and Riddle _still_ threw the tart away!”

Ace took a deep breath, placing a hand on his hip with a dark glare.

“I’m pissed. I’m not just gonna let him off the hook with a tear-filled apology. And, you!” I blinked when he pointed at me. “What the hell is wrong with you!? He nearly killed you! Yet you’re totally okay with him just clinging to you like that!? He went straight past “wolf” to freaking “demon”! Him clinging to you is even making your wounds hurt more, isn’t it!?”

“E… Eh?” Riddle looked at me and realized what he was doing, and proceeded to pull away in a panic- Trey quickly catching him before he could fall over. He held the redhead close to his chest. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t- I-!”

“It’s fine.” I quickly forced out, voice rasping quite painfully. I tried to clear my throat, but that only caused more pain.

“It is _not_ fine!” Ace snapped out. “You _always_ do this! You’re _always_ getting yourself hurt and start spouting shit like “oh, it’s fine” and “it’s okay” when it’s _not_ fine and it’s _not_ okay! We can all clearly see that you are _not_ okay, so just _stop it!_ Damn it…”

He huffed and turned away, voice cracking as his tears started to fall again. The boy brought a hand up to his face, hiding his expression from everyone after that rant.

“I hate this… I hate you. Just stop it. Just...” Another kind of rawness made itself known in his voice as he whirled around, glaring at me from over his shoulder. “Just get _angry!_ You’re allowed to be mad at other people for hurting you! Y-You don’t have to always forgive them so easily! You’re not a fucking saint, El! Stop trying to act like one!”

I… I’m not… I wasn’t…

I just…

I just don’t see the point in being mad at him.

Ace spun on his heel, pointing at me angrily. “And if you ever try to pull that martyr bullcrap again, I’ll kill you myself! No dying! Period! You got that!? I don’t give a shit if you’re older than me; you forced yourself into my life and made yourself my friend, and friends _don’t die_ on each other! So stop it!”

I… I can’t…

I’m sorry. I’m _so_ sorry. But… I am going to die. Very soon, in fact. If I survive today, it’ll most likely be tomorrow. I can’t promise you anything. I-I’m… I’m not…

I’m so… I was just…

“...I’m sorry…”

He faltered at that. It wasn’t because of the apology itself, but because of the way I was looking at him. The sorrow, the guilt, the lament. The pure _weariness_ in my eyes and the way they shone with the pained knowledge of _something_ he couldn’t quite place. It was chilling and unnerving, and it left him even more choked up and afraid than what he already was.

Tearing my gaze away, I focused on the ground. The tense atmosphere was suffocating, even with Riddle’s sobs breaking the silence, but there was nothing else I could say. Nothing I could do to comply with his wishes. I didn’t have the heart or strength to tell him about my impending demise.

So when Riddle finally spoke again… I felt the strangest surge of relief.

“Th-Then… what should I do?” The redhead whimpered, looking up at the ginger and sitting up on his knees, palms pressed against the ground. It almost looked like he was begging him for forgiveness, pleading with the younger teen for some way to repent. “P-Please…”

Ace stared down at him for a moment. Red eyes flickered to me briefly, before landing back on the dorm leader. Ace huffed and crossed his arms, glaring away in the distance, refusing to look at him. “...You know, my birthday isn’t for a while.” He said, the comment very out of place. “September’s still a month away.”

Wait, what?

Deuce made a face. “What… are you getting at?”

Ace clicked his tongue, placing his hands on his hips grumpily. “I can’t do anything about El; she’s already forgiven you. But I haven’t! So… I demand we have a Revenge Unbirthday Party. We didn’t even get to really take part in the last one, but this time- _you_ make the tart. Got it, Riddle?”

He quickly added on as an afterthought,

“Oh! And no help from Trey either!” His glare darkened. “Do it yourself! If you do that…”

The boy paused for a moment. Then, he let out a breath and slumped his shoulders, defeat finally settling in.

“There’s nothing I won’t forgive.”

I cracked a small grin at that, weak however it may have been. He’s grown significantly since our first meeting, but… “Someone isn’t being very honest.”

“Oi, shut up!” He barked at me, ears turning a little pink from embarrassment. Ace was not someone who liked emotional things, and today had forced a lot out of him. “No one asked the peanut gallery! Now-” He turned back to the dorm leader, frowning. “-do we have a deal?”

Sniffling, Riddle nodded his head. “Y-Yeah. I… I got it. It’s a deal.”

Headmaster Crowley beamed, having been watching from the sidelines. He clapped his hands together, standing up. “Mm-hmm! Now that’s the beauty of compromise! The issue is settled then.”

“I guess.” Cater mumbled, before standing up and stretching his arms. “Alright! Well, if everything is decided, the rest of us should probably get to work cleaning up this garden. Our photogenic garden is in such ruins…” The strawberry blond sighed. “I’m so sad.”

Trey stood, fixing hit hat. “I’ll help.”

“No. You need to carry Riddle to the infirmary.” Cater shook his head, expression serious. “He _did_ Overblot. We need the nurse to look over him to be safe. That isn’t even mentioning Ellie…”

I made a face. “I said… that I’m-”

“Ellie.” Cater cut me off, fixing me with stern olive eyes. I tensed. “Being stubborn when you’re seriously hurt _isn’t_ cute. Ace is right- you need to stop it.” Taking my stunned silence as a response, he faced the blue-haired boy next to Grim. “Deucy, you can carry her, right?”

“Uh, y-yes!” The teen stammered, standing straight.

Headmaster Crowley sighed, looking at us all. “Mr. Diamond is correct. I’ll escort you there.”

Trey stared for a moment before nodding, bowing his head in gratitude. “Thank you. Riddle, come here.” The third-year carefully made his way over and hoisted his battered friend up in his arms. Riddle let out a small yelp, alarmed to be lifted so easily, but didn’t complain. He simply wrapped his arms around his shoulders. “Deuce, you should take El and follow.”

“R-Right!”

The teen made his way over and I started to protest, but the second his hand touched my back no more words could made legible. Instead pain flooded my senses and I cried out, the hurt only worsening when he tried to lift me- my ribs very much not liking the way my body was being bent. Deuce set me back down immediately and jumped back.

“I-I’m sorry! What did I do!? Are you okay!? Oh, no, no, no-!”

“I said I’m _fine!”_ I snapped out, tears burning my eyes once more. I tried to stand. “I-I can- _aaagh!”_

Nope, no, not happening! Fuck! My ankle did not like that.

Ace let out a small curse. “Shit, El- what’s wrong with your foot!?”

“I-I don’t know, _ow, ow, ow-!”_ I cried out and nearly kicked the ginger in the face when he tried to lift my pants leg up and remove my shoe. The tears came flooding out as I sobbed, my ribs starting to ache and causing my breathing to grow uneven and fast as a result. “S-Stop- _uwaah!_ I-I can’t- stop- it h-hurts; I can’t-!”

Grim and Cater both shouted in alarm, Deuce choking up again at the sight of my very purple and very swollen ankle once the ginger managed to remove my sock. Ace dropped the articles of clothing, pale in the face.

I can’t breathe. It hurts and I can’t breathe. Make it stop. “D-Don’t touch-!’

I squeezed my eyes tightly shut, sobbing and choking and gasping, red bubbling past my lips as I threw up red again. The texture in my throat was even worse now, stronger than ever. The taste of petals danced on my tongue.

“I…” Okay, okay. Just calm down. “I’m… I’m _fine.”_

Wait, what’s that? Fingers on one hand digging into my chest, and the fingers on the other pulling at dirt, I blinked and squinted at what appeared to be a black rock where Riddle had been sitting earlier. Ignoring everyone’s shouts and their panicked confusion on how they were gonna get me to the infirmary without making things worse, I raised a shaky hand and pointed.

“The… thing. What’s… the thing that’s…”

“Huh?” Cater, Ace, Deuce, and Grim looked so confused.

That was when the cat monster’s nose began to twitch. “Ah, I know that scent…”

He walked over to the stone, picking it up with his paws. His blue eyes went wide.

“I knew it! It’s the same as the black crystal from the mines!”

“You’re right.” Deuce stated in surprise. “Where did it come from?”

Ace scrunched up his nose at the cat monster. “You better not eat this one.”

“As if I’d ever forget that flavor!” Grim retorted, holding the stone closer to his face. A wicked grin formed on his lips. “Bottom’s up!”

He tossed it into his mouth.

_...Damn this cat..._

Deuce shook his head in disappointment while Cater and Ace let out alarmed shouts.

“H-He actually ate it!” The ginger exclaimed.

Cater was disturbed. “Grim, that’s the type of palette you have!?”

The cat monster ignored them. He pressed his paws to his cheek, happily chewing. “Mmmm~! It shtarth off with a wich thweetneth, and finitheth off with the thlighteth hint of bi’erneth for an aromatic eckthperienth!” Grim swallowed, humming. “This rock has its own unique flavor- completely different from the last!”

I rolled onto my side and wheezed, staring at the cat monster with the most distasteful expression I could muster. “This is… g-growing into… a bad habit.”

“I can’t believe he can actually eat that.” Ace grimaced. “He’s a monster, so his stomach’s probably built different from ours, but…”

“I don’t think that makes eating stuff off the ground okay.” Deuce said, perturbed by our animal-like companion.

Grim snorted at them. “I’ll have you know the lawn here also has a really refreshing flavor. You’d understand if you’d give it a try.” To prove his point he leaned down and started to tear at the grass with his teeth, chewing it.

“Oi!” Deuce scolded, hurrying over and smacking him on the nose, trying to get him to stop. “Quit it! That isn’t for eating!”

Cater shook his head at the nonsense. “Honestly… I can’t with you guys. But…”

He paused, watching as Deuce finally managed to get Grim off the ground, the boy handing the cat monster off to Ace who stuck his tongue out at the creature.

Voice soft, he close his eyes with a relieved sigh. “Thank you.”

On their way back over to us, Ace looked at Cater curiously, confusion written all over his face. “Did you say something?”

“Hm? Nope, not at all! Now come on- we need to get Ellie to the infirmary!”

Oh my gods, enough with that! The nurse won’t even be able to help! The curse will kill me before my wounds can!

“I’ll be _fine.”_ I tried to stand again, avoiding putting any weight on my bad foot this time, and brought a hand up to my mouth as I choked- the world momentarily spinning around me. I was seriously lightheaded and nauseous. Throwing up so much blood in one day can not be good for a person. “Euughh…”

Where did everyone go? Is the sky falling? Oh, no, wait- that’s just me.

In his panic to catch me Deuce grabbed my arm, and more blood came pouring out of my mouth as I suddenly convulsed and gagged. Petals splashed into the crimson puddle, and the boys let out several more shrieks. I’m so… dizzy. Cold and warm and numb, and… sick. I felt a bit tingly too, actually. I looked at my bloodied hand and the petals sticking to my palm, eyes having trouble focusing as I tried to figure out which double was the real one.

“Painting the roses red…” I wheezed, the song bitter on my tongue as all I could taste was iron. “Who dares to taint with vulgar paint… the royal flower bed?”

“E-Ellie…?” Cater stammered, holding a hand out uncertainly. “A-Are… Are you gonna make it?”

“Of course she is!” Ace snapped, hurrying to my other side and forcibly sliding my free arm over his shoulder. “She’s gonna be fine!”

Aww, he’s worried. Oh, wait, that’s a bad thing. The more lightheaded I grew the less lucid my thoughts were, leaving me behaving slightly silly as the blood loss got to me. I giggled weakly and coughed, a small whimper escaping me as my ribs throbbed.

“No, I’m not~!” I sang, the words raspy and wet. “Lookie!”

Kicking up my bad foot as if to gesture for Cater and Grim to come closer, I stuck my tongue out childishly for everyone present to see, letting them view the petal on my tongue.

“I got… a rose in my mouth! Pretty, right? Gehe… _urgh…”_

I began to cough harder, the boys only able to watch as more red fell from my lips, dribbling past my chin. Soon enough, I could feel it- a fully formed rose forcing its way up my throat. I was left coughing and choking, even past the point of when the thorns pierced the roof of my mouth and sliced my tongue.

So… tired. It hurts, but…

Maybe if I sleep… the pain will go away? That would be nice.

“Curtheth thuck.” I so wisely mumbled as my last thought, the world around me going dark as my body went completely limp in Ace and Deuce’s hold.

The last thing I really remembered was hearing them shouting my name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Riddle 100% had a puppy crush on El at the beginning, lol. Mostly starting from when they met in the cafeteria and she was nice to him. Considering his mother complex, he found El to be the exact opposite of her. She was warm and friendly, but instead of it actually being a proper CRUSH crush, it was more of him just kind of finding a mother IN her if that makes sense. Like- a certain someone from Fruits Baskets towards Tohru Honda. (Not naming names since it's a spoiler, but if you've seen/read it you know who I'm talking about). 
> 
> She embodies the traits a mother SHOULD have, in his opinion, and is kinda projecting. Which is why during the main battle Riddle had a hard time differentiating between her and his mother, because a part of him saw El as the caring mom he wanted and should have had. So whenever she shows the slightest bit of affection towards him- in the dreams as child and currently- he just soaks it all up. 
> 
> ...El is Tohru Honda, confirmed, lol. But, like, if Tohru Honda tried and failed to express tsundere tendencies and had bouts of extreme pettiness. XD 
> 
> ANYWAY! I've come to the conclusion that I really love to write Ace. His character just has so much personality. Like- wow. You go, man. Let out those emotions. Be angry. SHOW YOU CARE but also show how much you don't want to admit that you care. Also this chapter was going to be longer, but how the next part is gonna go I needed to split it up some. Oof. What'd you guys think? :D 
> 
> Oh! Btw, art commissions are open up on my tumblr. The earliest I can start is the first or second week of November, but that's only if anyone commissions me at all. The computer I was using to do art on died, and the one I'm using now isn't compatible at all with my cintiq (it's my grandma's and a 2011 model T_T) so I need to get a new one. My sister said she'd let me use her laptop and cintiq to do the commissions, seeing as because I'm currently in hiding to avoid catching the virus due to my own health problems I don't actually have a way to earn the money to purchase said computer. She works from home as she ALSO has health problems, so I'd spending the time there. But again, that's only if someone messages me about commissions on tumblr.
> 
> It'd be super appreciated! 
> 
> That aside, hopefully this chapter was enjoyable. Wrote it in one day, surprisingly. So many emotions are happening. Oof. Next chapter is the big climax and the start of the end of episode 1. :D 
> 
> El finally spilled the beans, lol. Anyway, thanks for reading! I hope you guys all have a wonderful day and/or night wherever you are! <3 
> 
> (hands you tissue boxes and glass of water to help handle the emotions)


	25. The World Within

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was a little anxious about this chapter, as I've been thinking about it since the start of the fic. XD I knew what I wanted to happened, but I wasn't sure if I would be able to pull off actually writing it. I think I did okay. There's some parts that I'm pretty proud of, but... uh, yeah. I'm posting it now before I chicken out. Also-wow! Two chapters in the course of, what, three days? I'm on a roll, haha. Also I know next to nothing about hospital stuff, so please bear with me. T_T I did my best.

Eleanora wasn’t moving. What strength she had in her legs gave out, and Ace and Deuce could only watch as her body fell down and forward, held up only by the grip the two boys had on her arms. Blood bubbled out past her mouth and dripped from her chin, warm and gross and wet, her skin unnervingly pale. It went way past ashen at this point; the nineteen-year-old practically blue.

And… she wasn’t moving. Why wasn’t she _moving? Was she breathing?_ It didn’t look like she was. She was just… still and silent and cold, and limp in her friends’ grasp.

“E-Ellie…?” Cater forced out, voice weak and small as he gazed at the girl his underclassmen were barely holding upright.

The black stone that Grim had swallowed suddenly felt heavy in his stomach. He remembered what had happened; he had seen it all from his spot atop Ace’s head during the battle. He also remembered what had happened in the botanical garden. The ink monster from the mine. She survived all of those, pushing forward and crawling her way to victory.

The human wouldn’t just… die. Right?

“H-Human?” Grim choked, taking two steps forward on his hind legs before falling to all fours, dashing the rest of the way over. “Human! Eleanora! Wake up!”

He pressed his front paws to her right knee, shaking her and trying to jostle her awake. She remained unresponsive. He stared up in fright at the pained face in front of him, viewing her furrowed brows and contorted expression. The tears that dripped silently from her face as she only fell deeper into her sleep.

“No…” This wasn’t right. “No! Human, _wake up!_ You’re my henchman, so listen to me!”

His claws unsheathed unintentionally, digging into her leg in his panic. His eyes were started to sting, and Grim blinked rapidly as his lips curled back, fangs bared at the unconscious woman.

“Eleanora! S-Snap out of it!”

“G-Grim…” Cater tried to say, reaching a hand out, but it fell on deaf ears. The man himself wasn’t quite sure as to what he even _should_ say, and went silent as a result.

“W-We need…” Deuce began, swallowing thickly and looking down at his very pale friend. “We need to get her to the nurse. _Now._ Ace, c-can you… can you help get her on my back? I think that… might be safest…”

The ginger didn’t respond at first. It took a second before his stunned red eyes shot up from the brunette to look at the teen, meeting Deuce’s eyes. Snapping out of his shock, Ace shook his head and stood, carefully grabbing both of Eleanora’s arms. “Y-Yeah. Uh, come on. Cater, I-I need you to grab her legs. I can’t- she- _El is_ …”

“Of... Of course! Grim, you make sure her bad foot doesn’t hit the ground, okay?”

Grinding his teeth together, the cat monster nodded and hurried over, the boys all working together. Cater lifting her legs up, Deuce grabbed Eleanora’s thighs to keep her from falling while Ace forced the woman onto the blue-haired teen’s back and wrapped her arms around his neck. The ginger tried to ignore his frantically racing heart, and the chilling fear he felt at seeing just how _bad_ of shape his friend was in. How wounded and sick.

She knew she wasn’t feeling well- _Ace and Deuce knew she wasn’t feeling well._

But they still brought her along to the decisive match anyway. Damn it! If she wasn’t there, Riddle wouldn’t have insulted her. If Riddle hadn’t insulted her, Ace might not have punched and caused him to Overblot. Of course, Ace might have just lost his temper regardless considering how angry the dorm leader had made him over the course of the past few days, but… El wouldn’t be dying.

She would still be breathing and _alive._ She would be annoying them with her constant frustration and terrible singing skills, which actually weren’t _as bad_ as Ace tried to make it sound, and she would still be surprising them with how _silly_ she could be on occasion. They would have to protect her from the jerk-faced delinquents, and guide her through the gym locker room so she could get changed into her uniform without any worries, and the boys would get upset with her when she tried to overexert herself.

They would… They would be playing card games with her in the middle of a ridiculous blanket fort they made, goofing off with _ghosts_ who kept cheating, and… just having fun in general. She was such a disaster human, but that was why they liked her so much. Even though she’s older by a couple years and from an entirely different world, she was… still a person. She was still a friend.

And, in all his years of elementary and middle school, Ace has _never_ had a female friend as fun as her to be around. He was such a jerk to her when they first met, but when the incident with the magic collar happened El was the first person he thought to go to. He trusted her; hell, he got _whacked_ with a giant freaking ink monster lantern trying to save her back in the mines!

El and Deuce, and to a lesser extent Grim… damn it; they were his friends! And as mad as she could make him sometimes with her carelessness, he still cared! He didn’t like to admit it; he hated how mushy and gushy she tried to turn their conversations, but this was too much. He couldn’t hide it.

And the last thing he really said to her was how much he _hated_ her. He never mentioned how much he appreciated her going through all this insanity with them, or how impressed he was for the way she kept going in a world she knew nothing about. It scared her, frustrated her, and left her homesick- but that was normal. It didn’t stop her from continuing on though.

Even if it made her mad or if she got hurt.

Ace doesn’t think he’s ever said a single “thank you” for all that’s she done, or even apologized for all that they’ve put her through, in the entire time they’ve known each other. She’s thanked him and the other guys countless times, but has Ace ever thanked her? Sarcastically, maybe, but never genuinely.

And now… now she might…

No. She was going to be fine.

 _El…_ Ace swallowed down the lump in his throat as he pulled away, watching Deuce stand with the woman on his back. _Just hang in there._

They were going to save her.

She’s done so much- back when they were about to expelled, she offered up the only shelter she had in the world, to try and stop that from happening. When the ink monster approached back at the mines when they got the magic crystal, it was her plan for them to work together that led to them defeating it. She let Ace stay the night in the dorm several times after his magic got sealed, and she did everything she could to help calm Riddle down. It was her plan that let them defeat the ink monster possessing him, and it was her that talked Riddle out of the darkness.

_It was all El._

With her stupid acts of kindness, and her bad-thoughts face, and her worries, and her mushy gushy words of cheesiness, and the silly happiness she expressed at being able to spend time with friends, that led them to getting this far. She tried to keep the boys motivated before, convincing them that everything would be fine in the end.

And yet now… everything’s just gone so wrong.

When the boys finally did make it to the infirmary, Riddle was fast asleep. Trey and Headmaster Crowley were wide awake, though. And they were more than a little alarmed when they saw Eleanora completely passed out. The nurse hurriedly instructed them to set her down on one of the empty infirmary beds, and ushering them all out of the room the staff member was horrified to find that the girl’s condition was even worse than previously expected.

There were several deep lacerations on her arms and legs, and quite a few lesser ones on her face. Three of her ribs were broken and two were cracked, and her left foot was twisted badly, one of the ligaments torn- probably from how she had landed if what the students told the nurse about Eleanora being hit by a tree were true. Her entire back and torso were covered in contusions, large and purple and grotesque. Her neck itself had a large handprint- as if she had been attacked and strangled sometime before the battle.

And in her mouth… was a rose.

That left the nurse stunned. Where did it come from? It couldn’t be pulled or cut out, judging by the looks of it. Using some of the technology he had available, he was able to see that it trailed all the way down to her lungs, taking root in the organ’s flesh. Was it a curse caused by the Overblot? How long has it been there? There was no way the nurse could find out- not before he treated the rest of the girl’s injuries.

She’s lost a lot of blood…

They’ll need to do a test before they can start a transfusion, nonetheless get the items needed for it, but he can hook her up to a few I.Vs for now. Clean her injuries and heal what little he can of her more severe wounds using his magic. Those ribs were especially concerning. He’ll need the headmaster to contact an actual hospital, just in case things go south. From the looks of it, there might be some internal bleeding that’ll need to be handled, and they’ll need the blood required for a transfusion anyway.

Oh, the school’s reputation was definitely going to suffer from this… but it would be even worse if they let a student die under their care.

Headmaster Crowley had a lot of damage control to do, and even more paperwork that was going to have to be filled out.

**The Next Day.**

Lilia hummed to himself as he sipped his tea, relaxing at the table within the Diasomnia Dorm. He eyed his son from across the table, listening intently as he told him about his classes from earlier on in the week. Occasionally he and the green-haired fae beside him, a first-year named Sebek, would break out into an argument, but the ancient man didn’t really mind. He found it amusing, if he was being honest.

“-best student, so the Young Master can be proud!” Sebek declared boldly, voice as loud as could be. “He won’t regret choosing me as a bodyguard!”

“...Be quiet…” Silver murmured, aurora-colored eyes flickering with annoyance as he glanced at the young fae. “Such a nuisance…”

“Why, you-!”

“Now, now,” Lilia chuckled, waving at them, “let’s not start. Sebek, tell me- have you made any new friends yet? It’s always good for a youth such as yourself to be surrounded by many kinds of people. It’s a great learning experience.”

Sebek froze at that, eyes growing comically large. “I-I-I have not… yet… as I did not believe it was necessary for being a knight. But if Lord Lilia believes it is something I must do…”

So easy to tease. He’ll believe anything the ancient fae tells him. Lilia smirked at that, carefully picking up a cookie and biting into it. “Why, of course! It’ll help you improve your socializing skills, which can be _very_ important should you need to interrogate someone or have to collect information in a civil manner. It’s good to get along with your peers.”

“Then… I will do it!” Sebek declared loudly, standing up from his seat with a fist pressed to his chest. “I’ll make you proud, Lord Lilia! A-And Young Master Malleus, too! I will ensure that he will have the _best_ version of myself as his guard! He can count on me to keep him safe!”

“Fufufu~ good, good.” Lilia chuckled, fingers curling around his lips to hide his amused smirk. “I’m sure we’ll both look forward to it.”

Silver sighed and took a sip of his tea, already exhausted from being in the young fae’s presence. It didn’t help that got up earlier than usual, what with all the fuss going about since yesterday. His eyelids were dropping, signalling how he was close to falling asleep. “Tired…”

That was when something caught his attention. Raising his head, Silver blinked sleepily in the direction of several students who were entering the dorm lounge, gossiping amongst themselves and looking at each other’s smart phones. That seemed to strike something in him, for the boy then turned back to the ancient fae who raised him, setting his tea cup down on the table without making a sound.

“Fath- er, I mean… Lord Lilia, did you hear the news?”

Lilia blinked, pausing in his ruffling of Sebek’s hair. The green-haired freshman looked like he wanted to be annoyed that his professional appearance was being ruined, but was too embarrassed and touched by the show of affection to speak. “News? Did something happen?”

“Yes. On my way back to the dorm yesterday, the Heartslabyul students were all gathered together in a panic in the Hall of Mirrors. The headmaster was with them, trying to calm them down. Apparently the dorm leader- Riddle Rosehearts- had Overblotted during what was meant to be a decisive match to overthrow him from his position.”

Oh dear. That was unexpected.

Nothing like that had happened before in this school; at least, not during the time Lilia has been here, and especially not during the time Dire Crowley has been the headmaster. He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised, though. Humans were fragile creatures, and many of them selfish. The ones at this school seemed especially keen at bottling up their feelings, letting their egos inflate to such ridiculous heights that when something mildly inconvenient happens to them… they utterly lose their composure.

To an ancient fae like him, who had lived for thousands upon thousands of years, it was quite pathetic.

Lilia frowned, sitting back in his seat and propping his chin up with his left hand, waving his right index finger about to make a tea pot magically lift in the air, pouring himself another cup, before having a spoon lift a sugar cube and drop it in, the utensil then stirring the tea within as his finger made circular motions. “I see... I do hope no one was harmed too badly.”

Silver was silent. Lilia raised an eyebrow at him, observing the slight changes in his usually blank expression.

“Who was it?”

“I… don’t know the name, but it was the girl accidentally summoned by the magic mirror.” Eleanora Quince, Lilia realized. The adorable human girl he met before, with the rose in her mouth eating away at her life and memories. “She worked together with a handful of Heartslabyul residents to save the dorm leader, and got severely injured in the process.”

“...Did they survive?”

“Yes.” Silver nodded. Sebek narrowed his eyes, listening to the conversation with curiosity, though couldn’t help but find the human girl foolish. She was magicless, was she not? Clearly she had a death wish. “Thanks to her efforts, and the students she was working with, the dorm leader’s life was saved. But… the girl was in really bad shape. There are a few pictures and videos on the Magicam website showcasing the incident- or so I’ve heard.”

Ah. That’s why everyone was so glued to their phone screens today. The rumor mill must be running rampant.

Out of curiosity Lilia fished out his smart phone from his pocket, quickly unlocking it and getting on the app. It didn’t take long to find it, but when he did he was a little startled by the images. The videos themselves had crackly audio and fizzy visuals due to the sheer amount of magic and chaos, but what he could see wasn’t very pleasant at all.

“I’m not sure whether she’s being reckless or bold.” Lilia commented honestly, expression falling into something a little more grim. “What made her think it was wise to walk straight towards the danger like that? She’s already weak enough, did she truly believe she could survive such an encounter?”

Flicking through some images, his eyes only darkened as he observed the blurry photos of the young mortal being hit with a rose tree by the ink monster. She had went sailing through the air, to the horror of her comrades, and was slammed through several thick hedges of foliage. You could see the headmaster still working to evacuate the students in some of the photos, and most of the videos were cut off because he had ordered the students to run away when he caught them just standing there recording, the teenagers unable to move in their terror.

Then…

“Oh.”

What is this? The girl was approaching the possessed dorm leader again. She seemed to be saying something to him, fighting through the tendrils of darkness- the wall of ink weakening with each word she said. Before long she was able to get close to him, climbing over the black and pulling him towards her and away from the creature possessing him.

Lilia had gone completely silent. Silver and Sebek were staring at him curiously, wondering what brought on such a change.

The ancient fae flicked through several more photos again, the monster now destroyed, a large waterfall of ink swallowing Riddle Rosehearts and Eleanora Quince. When it dissipated, all that was left were their unconscious forms and the headmaster pulling the remaining student that was recording away- leaving nothing left to be viewed.

That was when he saw it- Cater Diamond’s account.

There were several notifications informing Lilia that he had updated his status, and when the fae clicked on it he saw several worrisome pictures of Riddle and Eleanora asleep in the infirmary, the third-year recording their recovery progress for any concerned peers. Riddle looked mostly unharmed, saved for a bruise on his cheek and the dark circles under his eyes, but the girl…

“Poor little thing…”

She looked dead already. What spurred her on to save the dorm leader? Lilia couldn’t help but wonder. So many humans were selfish and greedy and cruel, and not many were willing to extend a hand out to help others. It was why Lilia’s greatest wish was for humans and fae-kind, no-

That people of _all_ races would one day reach peace. He lived through countless wars and endless cycles of death and vengeance, and he was tired of it.

But this…

She _crawled her way_ back into the danger despite her terrible injuries, despite being such a sickly and weak human. She didn’t have a spec of magic in her. Only a curse. But she did it- she fought her way to that possessed dorm leader and talked him down. She pulled him to her and cradled him like he was a sad child.

Of course, seeing as he Overblotted, Lilia could only assume Riddle Rosehearts was a sad child. One’s mental state had to be seriously unbalanced to lead to such a serious storm of negative emotion, and if there was a decisive match that meant there was a good chance he had overused his magic as well. Lilia did remember seeing a lot of students wearing magic-sealing collars in the past few days.

Eleanora Quince…

Truly, despite her horrible situation, was unlike any other human he had ever met. Of course, maybe it was _because_ of her situation that she was like this. She wasn’t from this world.

No. That wasn’t it. She was kind- all there was to it. Unfortunately, _kind_ was a dangerous thing to be in this place.

Perhaps that’s why she was cursed? Night Raven College was not a friendly place; someone like her would have been more suited for Royal Sword Academy. Yet it was sheer accident that led her to this world. Truly, a pitiable human.

An honorable one, too, actually. Should she die from her wounds, she would die having saved another life. Such a sweet little girl; Lilia almost wished he could have talked to her a bit more. She was quite easy to get along with and rather fun to talk to. He could only pray that she passed peacefully, that the doctors tending to her would let the modern pain medicine of today guide her gently into an eternal sleep.

“Ah! Master Malleus!” Sebek suddenly exclaimed, standing up in his seat and bowing.

Lilia could sense the magic before he could smell the young prince, and he turned in his seat to look behind him, seeing the man himself appearing in a flash of fireflies. The students in the dorm instantly went quiet, all of them backing away and bowing to show their respect.

“Welcome back!” Sebek greeted excitedly upon seeing him, before pausing. “Wait… were you not in your room?”

Lilia blinked. “So _that’s_ what we were forgetting! Oh no…”

The ancient fae cringed, bringing a hand up to his forehead. At least, before the tea party started, the trio did go out of their way to look for the young man. He always made it quite difficult to find him, and because of his overly powerful magic his phone often malfunctioned so it wasn’t like they were able to get into contact with him. It just so happened that midway in searching for him, the three of them got sidetracked and found their way back to the dorm brewing tea and chatting.

And, to Lilia’s chagrin, Malleus did not look as though he was in a good mood.

He was dressed in his school uniform, an odd thing to wear when classes were not in session today, though that quickly changed within a few moments through his own magic- his dorm leader uniform quickly taking place of his blazer and button-up. A large staff resembling a spinning wheel stood beside him, electricity crackling irritably from it as his gloved hand clenched tightly around the base. The hem of his elbow length gloves and the back of his torn cape were adorned with intricate details, decorated with little roses and thorns.

Malleus’ long locks of ebony hair fell over his shoulders and down below his shoulder blades, framing his irritable porcelain face and accenting the brightness of his chartreuse eyes. The irises looked downright acidic with the way they were glowing, his slit pupils thin with anger. Anyone who was in the room backed away, going so far as to escape back up the staircases to their rooms. If he listened closely, Lilia could even hear the roaring of thunder outside. It had been raining earlier, but he never thought much of it until now.

...Interesting. Malleus was in an even worse mood than usual.

“Welcome back, Malleus.” Lilia carefully greeted, rising up from his seat and teleporting over to him, hanging upside down with crossed legs. He kept his phone in his hand, making sure not to drop it even as he latched onto his ankles. He stared at the dragon fae’s cold expression. “Did something happen?”

“...Nothing that concerns you.”

“I see, I see.” Lilia commented as he watched the dorm leader make his way over to the table, his dark expression only growing more terrifying as he eyed the table set with snacks and tea cups. Sebek was fervently apologizing for not inviting him, forcibly making Silver stand and do the same, telling the man it was not their intention to forget him. “Well, I suppose that makes three people who are having a bad day. Although, two of them actually had their bad day yesterday.”

Malleus glanced at the ancient fae out of the corner of his eyes, expression cold but curious- silently demanding answers. The light rain outside began to pour harder.

“Have you met the little human girl yet? Ah, probably not.” Lilia corrected himself before the dragon fae could answer, though his eyes did zoom in on the way the electricity crackling from Malleus’ fingertips sparked a bit more aggressively than normal. “Well, long story short: the girl was summoned accidentally by the school and was made a student here. She’s made quite a few friends already, all from Heartslabyul. Those friends decided to challenge the dorm leader to a decisive match.”

“...I’ve heard.” Oh my. Was that rage Lilia could hear in his voice? A grin started to spread across the ancient fae’s lips, his slim fangs poking out. The mischief was rising up in him, curiosity starting to eat away at him the more he observed his ward. “What of it?”

This was quite a touchy subject for the young prince, wasn’t it? How odd.

Lilia spun in the air, holding his phone up for the man to see- careful not to put it too close should Malleus’ thunder magic shoot out and overload its processers. “The girl was involved. The dorm leader Overblotted, you see?”

Silence.

For a moment the rage vanished, instead replaced with shock- the glow of magic fading from Malleus’ widened eyes as he stared at the pictures of the two students bedridden in the infirmary. The rain came to an abrupt halt when that happened.

Sebek glanced at the windows, eyebrows furrowing in confusion at the sudden weather change, and Silver’s head bobbed forward as he dozed off.

“Would you like to see the videos?” Despite asking the question, Lilia went ahead and started to play them, behavior fueled by the mischievous and curious desire to figure out why the young prince was having such a reaction to this news. “You can see the orange-haired student hitting the dorm leader. They were arguing, it seemed. Riddle won the match, but he started to say some rather rude things, and before long he accumulated too much blot.”

He flipped through the images and videos, letting Malleus observe and look at each one. The storm clouds outside were now gone and the electricity was no longer crackling around his staff, but his eyebrows were furrowed. The dragon fae’s charcoal-painted lips were drawn into a thin line, clearly bothered by something Lilia was still trying to figure out.

When the pictures and videos showing the girl getting hit by a tree appeared, all anger seeped away from the fae prince. His grip on the staff loosened, though his composure did not fall. He still stood straight and regal as ever, but Lilia could tell- the prince knew this human girl somehow. Is she the reason he snuck out last night?

A little bit too far fetched of a theory, of course, as it wasn’t the first time Malleus had disappeared somewhere, but it was the first time he’s been gone for so long. It was also the first time he’s seemed to show such _interest_ in a human aside from Silver, even though the very reason he was at this school was so he could learn more about the mortal race.

“She’s also cursed, you know.” Lilia decided to casually add in, and it took everything he had not to widen his grin when he saw the lack of surprise on Malleus’ face. He definitely knew her. He had seen the rose in her mouth. “Between it and the injuries she sustained saving the dorm leader, I’m afraid she’s done for. I don’t know much about the curse itself, except for how it works.”

Lilia sighed dramatically, even if his heart did somewhat ache for the mortal’s doomed fate. Continuing to float in the air he rolled onto his back, letting his hair and jacket fall around him.

“Perhaps if she had given me her name when we first met I might have been able to do _something_ , but alas… she did not. I have no way of knowing how to break the curse either. There’s a chance it could be overwritten with _another_ curse, but this one is so ancient it might just backfire and kill her instead.”

“Her name…”

Lilia paused. He turned his eyes, looking at Malleus with furrowed brows. “Yes…? You know names give faes like us power, Malleus. If there was a way to remove the curse or reverse it, perhaps the girl could be saved. But between it and her injuries eating away at her, there’s no chance. If the curse could be removed or even slowed down, she may have a chance at healing from her injuries. But without that power, she’ll inevitably die.”

Suddenly, Lilia remembered. A conversation he had with Malleus a while back after one of his many late night disappearances. He had entered the dorm and collected a book to read, sitting on one of the sofas, but he kept glancing at his hand every now and then with a peculiar fascination. Lilia had decided to approach him, finding his behavior most intriguing.

 _“Is something wrong, Malleus?”_ He had asked, raising a brow as he dangled from the air, arms crossed as he leaned down against the back of the couch.

After a moment of silence, the man had turned towards him. Malleus seemed genuinely befuddled at the time, an expression Lilia not often saw on his face. _“Is it tradition for humans to hold hands with strangers for an extended period of time?”_

 _“An… interesting question.”_ Lilia had said to him, pondering the reason behind it. _“What brought this on?”_

Malleus returned to his book after that. _“...Mere curiosity.”_

Lilia did not give him an answer at that point in time. Now, though, he had an idea. A suspicion. Turning onto his front and rising up in the air until they were face-to-face, Lilia placed his hands on his hips and stared at the dragon fae. Malleus appeared to be thinking deeply about something, and only snapped out of it when the ancient man neared him.

“Do you know her?” Lilia inquired.

Malleus’ gaze flickered to the phone, where the image of the mortal girl remained. The dragon fae recalled the promise he made the other night, the one to meet. It was where he had been earlier, the dragon fae standing all night long in the darkness by the abandoned dorm, awaiting the human girl’s arrival with an almost _impatient_ sort of feeling. But when she failed to show, he had thought she had forgotten him, that she had broken her vow.

That she was as selfish and cruel as every other human he had been told about. No one made the prince of thorns wait, after all, and they certainly didn’t have the audacity to play such a trick on him. Not if they valued their lives. He was Malleus Draconia, after all, one of the top five most powerful mages in the world. The dorm leader of Diasomnia and the next to rule the Valley of Thorns.

She had approached _him_ , not the other way around. Eleanora Quince gazed up at him with eyes of wonder and awe, and spoke to him with an eagerness he had never before encountered.

But this… explained things.

She didn’t forget about him. She didn’t play a prank either. No, the mortal girl simply wasn’t conscious to be able to make the meeting. He recalled their previous conversations, and the way he dismissed her question of what “Overblot” meant. Who could have expected that the very next day, the dorm leader of Heartslabyul would do that very thing?

Overblotting after the decisive match…

Malleus could feel the anger rising up in him again, though he would never admit to it. No, the dragon fae was far too proud. Especially since said anger was being cast at himself- for if he had told the mortal what the word had meant instead of simply dismissing her, she might have thought to prepare for the worst.

...Then again, she did seem sort of airheaded. She was constantly getting herself into dangerous situations. It might not have done any good at all to tell her anyway.

That _foolish_ woman!

_Eleanora Quince... how dare you?_

Lilia blinked when he saw the quiet rage return to the man’s features, his staff sparking once more as he tightened his hold on it.

She was the one who asked for his company; she practically begged him to visit! And she was just going to let herself die like this? The first mortal stranger he had met who wasn’t afraid of him, who actually seemed to _enjoy_ his presence and wanted to know more about him- _to be friends with him_ \- and now she was just going to forfeit her life?

Unacceptable.

“Malleus?”

Lilia watched in alarm as the dorm leader stormed off, swinging his staff out to the side as the outline of his body grew bright with color. Fireflies began to appear and flicker around him, and before Lilia could so much as outstretch a hand to stop him the man had disappeared, vanishing once more with Sebek, Silver, and Lilia himself calling out his name.

…

Trapped. Swaying in the river of ink, drowning in the black. The thorns held me captive once more, forbidding me movement, and while the thorns pricking me did hurt I found I was simply too tired to care. A calmness washed over me, only the sounds of the black ink drifting in a gentle current reaching my ears.

It was so relaxing…

Cold, yes, but relaxing. Even if I couldn’t breathe, even if the needles in my lungs slowly killed me… it was just… calm. It didn’t even bother me that the number of vines around my form seemed to increase, sliding along my stomach and slicing at my flesh, gradually moving to envelop my entire form and keep me in the darkness forever.

There had been so much chaos, so much endless panic and fear. Now I just…

I just wanted to sleep.

...

The halls of the college echoed with the sounds of Malleus’ heels clacking against the marble floor. It was early morning so the building was quiet, the majority of the students still fast asleep in their beds. Faeries didn’t require much in the terms of rest, nocturnal by nature, so sleep was more of a luxury than a necessity.

Time also passed by in the blink of an eye for them; from minutes to years to decades. If they lose focus or stop paying attention, the world would have already passed them by. Spending the night waiting at the abandoned dorm was hardly a feat to be proud of, nonetheless even acknowledge, but the fact that it was time waiting spent in _vain_ that irritated him.

When that little human finally regained consciousness he was going to have to give her a stern talking to, regardless of whether or not she knew who he really was. No one makes him, Malleus Draconia, the prince of thorns, look foolish. And, most certainly, does no one _ever_ even _dare_ attempt to toy with his feelings in such a way.

That woman…

Absolutely unforgivable. Just who did she think she was? By the time he’s done saving her she was going to have to beg for his forgiveness.

With a slightly faster pacing of his step, his cape billowed out behind him as he made his way to the infirmary, his chartreuse eyes glowing with an eerie light and illuminating the darkness. To those that would see him now would surely find him monstrous, like he was no more than a creature from a child’s nightmare.

_But she didn’t. She saw him during the darkest part of the night and still claimed him beautiful._

Electricity crackled from atop the spinning wheel on his staff, and Malleus spun on his heel- making his way to the infirmary doors with an almost haunting sort of elegance. Opening it, he quickly cast a spell. He wanted to ensure no one would disturb what was about to take place, not at all willing to accept failure.

“Eleanora Quince…” A wind picked up in the room at the name, causing the curtains separating the infirmary beds and patients to drift- flowing in the air and revealing the spot where she slept. 

She had the gall to look so peaceful, too. Peaceful... and like she was already dead.

No longer hidden from normal eyes, now poking out from between her lips with its bloodied white petals, was the rose in her mouth. It was close to being fully exposed, just barely reaching past her teeth. Dried blood painted her sickly white skin and several bandages and cuts lined her form. One of her legs were elevated, her foot wrapped in a cast, and there were several I.V drips attached to her arms- giving her the nutrients she needed along with what was most likely some pain medication.

Malleus completely ignored Riddle Rosehearts, the boy fast asleep in his own infirmary bed. He was tucked beneath blankets with an I.V and a heart monitor, the machine beeping steadily to show he was still living.

Eleanora herself had a heart monitor, though the beeping went by at a much more concerning pace. In the corner of the room the nurse was asleep at their desk. Nobody was able to stir awake due to the spell Malleus had cast, which left him free to approach the unconscious woman.

He stopped beside the bed, staring down at the girl with an expression that was very much _not_ pleased. His lips curled into a deep frown as he reached out to her, brushing the hair out of her face to further the observe the damage. “Such an audacious little human…”

She was beaten all sorts of colors, dirt and bruises and dried blood painting her skin and clothes and hair, and the man found himself utterly _furious_ with her. Furious that she let this happen to herself. Did she have no sense of self preservation? Does she not care about her wellbeing at all, or how fleeting her mortality was? Does she not care about the _promise_ that was broken because of the damage she sustained from _her_ carelessness?

Oh, how he wanted to hate her. To loathe her very existence.

Malleus truly did not expect what this new year at Night Raven College brought. There was so many things he still needed to learn, which was why he was even here in the first place. He came to the college to separate prejudice from truth, to learn about humans with his own experiences. Yet every single one cowered before him… except her.

A woman from another world, who knew nothing about him. Who constantly put herself in danger, whether intentionally or not, and made a promise that she dared to break in such a fashion that made it impossible for him to hate her for it.

“I won’t allow you to forget.” Malleus told the unconscious human, narrowing his eyes. “I forbid it.”

She _will_ awaken, and she’ll realize what she’s done. This human… oh, how she infuriated him so. He slid his hand further down her face, resting his palm over her eyes as if to sense her dreams. Avoiding the wires and tubes, Malleus sat down beside her on the bed. His hand then trailed down her jaw and her throat- pausing momentarily at the hand-shaped bruises a certain lion had left, before continuing to her shoulder and finally landing on her hand.

The same hand, in fact, that had once grasped his so eagerly as she looked up at him, asking for his name and wondering if they’d ever meet again. His fingers wrapped around hers, the man able to feel just how _cold_ she had gotten due to the lack of warmth seeping through his gloves.

The one human who had never been scared of him… who approached him so fearlessly…

And she was dying. Honestly, the nerve she had- it was unfathomable. She just went and did as she pleased, didn’t she? Comes and goes, and tries to fade just as fast. He remembered her stare when they first met in the library, the way she just stood there in silence gazing at him. He had thought she was frightened of his appearance at first, but that was not the case.

No, she was in awe of him. She claimed he was beautiful.

She claimed a lot of things about him, actually, that most would not dare think or even suggest. Bold and curious, and so very… strange.

Malleus ran his thumb across her palm, tracing the scars her monster companion had left upon their first meeting. So small and fragile; did she not realize how exposed or vulnerable she was in this world? She was no more than a baby- a little duckling that barely knew how to walk. He himself could kill her so easily should he desire. He was far more powerful than any monster she has or would ever face.

Yet she held onto him, grasping his hands within her own, her eyes and smile so bright it was nearly blinding. There had been a warmth in her words during their conversation, something he couldn’t quite place. But it was there, and he found he enjoyed it; her repetitive compliments, her awkward stammering as she tried to convince him to visit again. The heat from her hands had seeped through the gloves he wore, just showing how _human_ and _alive_ she was then.

But now there was none of that.

Malleus stopped what he was doing. He closed his eyes and sighed, feeling some of the anger melt away. It was replaced with something more mellow and cold, more… lonely. A feeling he was used to, yet accompanied with a kind of disappointment. He had just met this human two days ago, but she has already left such a strong impression on him.

Now she dared to leave him behind.

“You sealed your fate on the day you chose not to cower before me.” He murmured softly as he stared down at her sleeping face. “Now face the consequences of your actions, or do you intend to die and go back on your word?”

No response, but it wasn’t as if he truly expected one.

Tangling his fingers within her own, Malleus discarded his staff; letting it float beside him above the floor as he cupped her face with his other hand. Leaning down, he pressed his forehead to her own, careful not to hurt her with his horns as he slid his eyes shut and entered the realm of her dreams.

When he arrived Malleus found himself greeted by an endless expanse of white, with a river of black stretching out as far as the eye could see. Red spider lilies floated along the ink, the smell putrid and intense, the beautiful flowers unmoving on the liquid surface. It wasn’t until Malleus took a step forward that the river itself even rippled, finally allowing the lilies to flow along a slow current.

Ominous, yet enchanting. This was the world within the curse.

 _How far does it reach?_ He wondered.

Does the river truly stretch on forever? Where did these flowers come from; how did they bloom? Why spider lilies? It was a _rose_ in her mouth, after all, so how come an entirely different sort of flower floated along the river’s surface? As he walked along the black, taking in the scenery and observing his surroundings, he noticed the lack of sound.

The only thing he _could_ hear was the ink rippling beneath his heels, like tiny droplets splattering against the ground.

No. Wait.

Something _was_ dripping. Dripping onto the river, causing the flowers to spread so far out in distance. Was that… blood?

Turning and heading in that direction instead, Malleus followed the sound and the scent- moving faster only when he found himself recognizing it. It was the smell of _her_ blood, of Eleanora Quince, and as he continued to move he could see her silhouette in the distance. Thorn covered vines wrapped around her form, pulling her ever-so-slowly into the river of black. The sharp needle-like plant dug into her flesh, tearing at her throat and the rest of her body.

The young woman was trapped.

And every drop of blood gave birth to a new spider lily, the lycoris radiata blooming and spinning along the river’s surface before slowing to a stop and just… drifting into the nothingness along the rest. A breeze blew then- out of place and not belonging in this world- and he thought he heard a whisper. A voice, one so familiar yet so far away he couldn’t quite name who it belonged to.

_“...on’t come closer…”_

Oh?

_“Not you…”_

Someone dared to give him orders? This curse… how interesting. So the will of the caster existed within it still. The person must be quite the powerful mage to have performed such a spell.

_“...stop…”_

Malleus ignored the warnings, continuing towards the woman trapped within the thorns. A screech could be heard in the distance, vengeful and angry, and the river of black reacted to it. Vines covered in sharp deadly thorns rose up- swinging towards him with the intent to kill.

Malleus barely even had to move. He simply continued to walk forward, chartreuse eyes flashing an acidic green as a large wall of lime green flames came flooding around him, the sparks shooting out from beneath his feet and destroying all in his path. The thorns melted away and the black river bubbled angrily around the girl he had come to save.

From it a shape began to form, a pair of black goopy hands reaching out and wrapping around the girl, fingers curled around her already caged throat. _“Can’t… have…!”_

It was a tall figure, towering over the girl who was already half sunken into the river. Eyes nearly as bright as his own stared back at him, cold and unforgiving. The black goop hung from what was meant to be arms, the sleeves shredded and touching the liquid surface. Something was _very_ familiar about this figure… though he couldn’t quite place why.

Was it mimicking him? Taking his shape? How else would one explain the horns protruding from the top of its head?

 _“...lives…”_ The figure hissed. _“This life belongs to me! All the lives this child has will fall to my curse!”_

“Is that so?” Malleus watched with little to no expression as the figure cradled the girl closer, only causing the thorns pricking away at her flesh to tear deeper.

He watched as the blood dripped from her fingertips, splashing onto the ink below and giving birth to another flower. Though it was hard to make out from this distance, if Malleus looked closely he could see Eleanora’s reflection. No, it wasn’t even a reflection at all. That body was the part of her that allowed the curse to affect her in the real world, while within the river itself rested her mind.

The part of her that slept and dreamed and chased the memories stolen from her.

And judging from the sounds of it, it wasn’t the first time this woman has been cursed. Malleus tore his gaze away from the river and faced the silhouette. It truly must have been an ancient curse, because the figure was barely holding up. The voice was so gravelly and old that it was hardly distinct enough to form audible words. It must have belonged to someone young at some point, but time has taken its course.

_“Ell… is… El… the name… The name... is... miNE!”_

Pathetic.

“I’m afraid you’re mistaken.” He informed calmly, not at all impressed with the sight before him. Malleus raised a hand up, palm facing outwards towards the creature. “She gave her name to _me.”_

The lime green flames spewed forth. A wave of thorns rose up to fight him, but it was no match. The fire ate away at the curse, at the remnant of the creature who had cast it, until there was nothing left. The spiral of heat proceeded to envelop Eleanora herself, but instead of causing harm it freed her- burning away at the rose in her mouth and the thorns that trapped her.

The ink that had been trying to swallow her rippled and bubbled, before spitting her out like she was something rotten and leaving her to lay lifeless among the black surface as the river smoothed itself out. The fire died down and flickered out, and Malleus knelt down beside the collapsed woman.

The blood stains had faded from her clothes, but the wounds remained. Pulling the woman close, he wrapped an arm around her waist and hoisted her into his lap, bringing his fingers down to her shredded throat. Green light sparked from his fingertips, the spell leaving his lips and causing the flesh to pull itself back together, healing. Her head fell onto his shoulder, color starting to return to her face slowly but surely. This was the most healthy he has ever seen her.

Such a small little human…

She truly had no idea what she was up against. Not with this curse, not with this world. Not even with him. She merely followed along in the direction life led her, frustrated and confused and scared.

Slipping a hand beneath her knees, he lifted her up to his chest- the man standing tall. He looked down at her when he heard her breathing shift, going from momentarily shallow to rushed, before finally regulating into something more steady. She relaxed in his hold, lashes fluttering as she tried desperately to wake, only to give up and slump against him.

_Warm._

He could feel the heat from her body seeping through his clothes, warming up the normally cold skinned fae. Her fingers reached out and pinched the folded lapel of his coat, innocent and unknowing of what was happening around her. The blood stains faded from her clothes, nearly leaving her to blend in with the environment if not for her dark hair and fair skin.

Seeing her in such a way only made him think of how _pure_ she was compared to the rest of the world. To those who in acted in cowardice, in fury and hate. In greed and selfishness. Rather than run, she faced forward to save a life. A foolish act, but one that bore fruit.

Just what caused the mirror to summon her at all? Why did it bring her here to Twisted Wonderland? Was it the curse?

What made Eleanora Quince so _special_ that he, Malleus Draconia, was trying to save her? He had stopped the curse for now, but it would start to spread again given time. This was just a temporary solution.

And those spider lilies… they were a symbol. Blooming from her spilled blood, hinting at how she would just be reborn and doomed to die a cursed life once more. With no way to break the curse, history would be fated to repeat itself. Just how many lives has this girl led, only for them to be cut short? How many times did she have to be reborn to end up in a world without magic, only to be inevitably transported back to one with it?

Who cursed her name?

Rather, who cursed what _used_ to be her name? And why?

Malleus supposed he would never learn, for that person was most likely dead by now. It was just their magic itself that remained, and the memory of a conscious that guided it. The curse probably didn’t even act the way it was originally designed to, having degraded and mutated over the years in which its caster had disappeared, a new name overwriting the previous.

Eleanora Quince…

He looked down at the girl in his arms, eyebrows furrowed ever-so-slightly. “Who are you?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THERE IT IS!!!! Phew. Okay. What did you guys think? Was really anxious about that reveal. Also super excited to write Malleus being a total badass, but um... yeah. Hopefully everyone is still in character. Just who could that mystery curse caster be???? Whooaaaaa~ and now we finally know what the deal is with those red flowers that kept being mentioned! Reincarnation. My original idea (when I was still thinking of the story for this fic before I started writing the first chapter) heavily involved El being a reincarnation. 
> 
> I just... changed things up greatly from then. But like it's still a huge factor regarding her curse. Also the big reason why I wanted her to give Malleus her name. Mwahaha! Lilia spilling the beans and giving our boi an idea. I really hope Malleus was still in character for this. He's arrogant, as shown in the game and especially in the Halloween Event when talking to Vil (Like sir, just CALM DOWN) but he's also a soft boi and lonely boi, so I imagine him to be kinda angry with El for various reasons. 
> 
> There's just... so much going on. But this dream section was a thing I've been planning for a long time, so while nervous I'm also super happy it's finally here. 
> 
> ANYWAY! I really hope you guys enjoyed this and the reveal. <3 Let me know what you think in the comment section? Pretty please? (Puppy dog eyes) 
> 
> Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day/night wherever you are!


	26. Her Awakening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was kinda tough to write, but I hope you guys enjoy it. <3

She gave him no response. Eleanora merely continued to sleep, tucked gently against his chest. Such a fragile little human, so small and unaware. She would wake and have no idea what transpired in this place, only able to marvel at her survival. This pure little human, who dared to try and forfeit her life in an act to save another person.

Seeing her sleep so peacefully was indeed frustrating, especially since she was clinging to him so sweetly. It made it rather difficult to be mad at her. Honestly, just what did she do to be cursed this way? What reason did the mirror have to bring her to this world?

Was it because of her past lives? Had she always been meant to live here? If so, did that mean that in a desperate attempt to escape the curse that was haunting her… her soul had retreated to a magicless world?

It was a futile attempt, as fate clearly demanded she return to this place, but… he had to wonder- just how many deaths did it take? How many reincarnations fell prey to the curse before she could be reborn in a new and magicless world?

Just how long… did it take for her to obtain a new name?

This little human in his arms…

She was truly an enigma.

Malleus gazed down at the river of black before him, his chartreuse eyes narrowing dangerously as he recalled the mysterious caster from earlier. Just who were they? It seemed to have been trying to take his form, but there was something else about it that wasn’t quite right. That wasn’t quite _him_.

It was almost a shame that he got rid of it so soon, but he had a feeling it would return eventually. Maybe, when that time came, he would finally be able to get some answers.

The dragon fae sighed and looked at the girl once more, almost reluctant to release her. He couldn’t take this “body” with him to the real world; it was part of her subconscious and would have to remain here until his next visit. The power her name gave him would only allow him to do so much against this curse. At the very least, he can keep her alive long enough for her to find a way to break it.

Hmph.

“Just look at what you’ve done.” He mused, carefully setting her down on the smooth black surface. Her white clothes stood out against the darkness, and as the river rippled several bright red spider lilies came drifting by her. “For someone who claims to be magicless, you leave quite an effect on those you meet.”

The nerve of this little human. He’s met her only twice and yet he was compelled to go out of his way to save her. Resting a hand over her eyes, he took a deep breath and focused- feeling his mind be brought back to reality. Chartreuse irises glowing in the darkness, he awoke and carefully sat up, removing his forehead from the sleeping girl’s. Silent, he observed her.

It took a few minutes before he could feel it- the warmth from the hand entwined with his starting to seep through the glove he wore. Eleanora’s fingers twitched and he sat still, watching as she mumbled incoherently and turned, the woman tugging his hand forward lightly and cradling it close to her face. Malleus was startled, though he quickly forced his expression back into one of neutrality. Did she even realize what she was doing?

“This hand could kill you.” He informed, knowing full well she couldn’t hear him.

Eleanora continued to sleep, her lips parted just slightly as she breathed. Save for the bruises and cuts and the cast on her left foot, she almost looked healthy. Color was returning to her skin, and he watched as her chest rose up and down with each breath she took. The amount of blood that stained her clothes was a bit concerning, especially since Malleus knew how fragile humans could be, but she would survive. Of this he was certain.

Malleus leaned down slightly, hovering over her form as he watched her cling to his hand. There was something about this sight that he couldn’t quite describe, a strange sensation welling up in his chest that left him _wanting_. Wanting for what he couldn’t quite say, but he found himself rather content to just observe her.

She may be from another world, but if she knew who he was and the indications that his name meant… would the little human still be clinging to him like this?

“You foolish child of man…” Malleus murmured.

He ran his thumb against the back of her hand one last time, brushing over the scars and feeling for her pulse, before pulling away and standing. He ignored the familiar cold that followed him, her warmth gone as she no longer held his hand, and the man instead focused on grabbing his staff that was floating in midair. Straightening his posture and standing as tall as a king, he turned and started to walk away. He was about to leave when a thought occurred to him.

Those wounds… should he heal them?

Human lifespans are quite short, and hers more than most. Although it _would_ serve as a good warning to let them heal naturally, as the man did need to punish her in some way for making him wait for so long by the abandoned dorm. Oh, what to do?

Malleus hummed and curled a hand against his chin, pondering his options as he glanced at her from over his shoulder. He was definitely going to have her beg for his forgiveness, but that was only for after she had recovered. He needed to think of something more immediate, something that would leave her frustrated and annoyed.

Maybe Malleus should let her wallow in her guilt for a while? Make it somewhat difficult for her to find him. Ah, but if he does that… her life might waste away before they have a chance to speak again. It would defeat the purpose.

“Perhaps leaving you in ignorance of what occurred would suffice…”

Let her question why the thorns were gone. Panic over the realization that she missed their meeting. Malleus will simply play along, acting as though he had nothing to do with this until the time came for it to be revealed. Her confusion would bring him great amusement, and the slow recovery of her wounds would serve as a lesson.

Eleanora needed to not throw herself into danger so readily, and for doing so she must face the consequences. One does not pleadfor his presence in their life, and then _fail_ to show up when the time of meeting arrives.

A low chuckle left his charcoal-colored lips, his eyes glimmering with amusement. “Eleanora Quince... truly, you are unlike any other.”

He couldn’t wait to see her baffled expression when she told him about the decisive match and of her miraculous survival. The surprise that would light her face when he informed her of how the curse has momentarily reversed. As petty as this half-hearted punishment was the fact remained that he did want her around a little longer.

To see her boldly approach and compliment him, and to feel the warmth of her hands once more… oh, he hated how much he was looking forward to it. Despite all her misfortunes, she was quite lucky. If she hadn’t given him her name when she did, she would most certainly be dead.

The only reason he had asked for it in the first place was so that he could keep an eye on her. She had been unlike any other that he had met; so bold and sweet, and so very curious about him. He wanted to learn more about her. Obtaining her name seemed the best way to go about it. In the end, it turned out to be a wise decision- for it was her name that allowed him to save her.

_Child of man…_

Malleus cast one last glance at the woman. Seeing her continue to sleep, the man turned away and waved his staff through the air, breaking the spell that had been cast.

_You aren’t allowed to die._

Hearing the nurse start to stir, he disappeared in a flash of fireflies.

**Two Days Later**

Classes were a disaster.

Neither Ace nor Deuce could focus on their lessons, and it wasn’t like Grim was even attending them. The cat monster vehemently refused to leave his self-proclaimed henchman’s side until she recovered. He kept declaring that she would wake up, that everything would be fine, even though everyone else feared otherwise. Cater had to lure the cat away with the promise of tuna cans, taking care of Grim while Eleanora slept.

Everyone was stressing out about this awful situation. Thankfully, given time, things did start to look up. One of the sleeping students finally woke.

It was Riddle, of course, as he had merely been exhausted from the overuse of magic, and from the stress the Overblot transformation had put on his body. Aside from that, he wasn’t really injured. The bruised cheek Ace had given him had healed pretty nicely due to the nurse and his magic, so with the promise of returning for a check-up every day Riddle was able to leave.

Trey was right by his side during that time, helping him whenever he should need it despite Riddle's protests, and even going as far as to assist him with club activities. Ace and Deuce worked with Cater, Grim, and several other Heartslabyul dorm residents to clean up the rose garden that had been destroyed, though it was a very long and arduous process. No one really had a whole lot of motivation to actually clean, especially with the threat of a possible death weighing over them, but they did it.

And the majority of the videos that had been taken _during_ the crazy battle, showcasing the dorm leader’s breakdown and the violence that followed, were removed by order of Headmaster Crowley. Unfortunately, they had gone so viral by the time he had learned of them that it was near impossible to get rid of them all- and now all of Twisted Wonderland knew about it.

The only bright side during all of this was that not many outsiders knew of Eleanora yet. She had been wearing a male uniform at the time, and due to the fuzzy visuals no one could really tell who she was. Some comments did try to ruin that, but those users were quickly blocked and the comment section of the videos were deleted. It didn’t take very long before videos wound up being _re-_ postedthough, and more comments followed after.

That isn’t even mentioning the dealings with the hospital. Between the bills, insurance, and even handling the media, the mask-wearing man had to figure out what to do about Eleanora and her identity since she wasn’t from this world. There was a lot to solve, and even more paperwork.

Headmaster Crowley was close to tearing his hair out at this point. She had no insurance or family members due to her being from another world, so there was nothing he could do to try and save school funds or his own pocket money. He had _thought_ about adopting her, as no one knew his own age except him and having her as his child would put her on his insurance, but that would cost quite a bit as well.

There was no winning.

In the end he had to suck it up and pay for everything, crying through his mask. He was not pleased in the slightest. He had to tackle one thing at a time, and even then it was chaos. It felt like eternity before things began to die down. Oooh, why did the mirror have to summon the wrong person? Even if she _was_ the reason several of his supremely selfish and egotistical students started to work together. At least all of his students were alive- for the most part, anyway. Eleanora was the only one who really sustained any injury, and severe injury it was.

Strange as it may be, the only bright side was that she was finally recovering. Not even the doctors could fathom what caused such a miraculous change in her condition. The rose that had been plaguing her was gone somehow, and without it constricting her airways or tearing into her flesh… she was living. Of course, she’ll still need proper treatment to actually wake up, but… this was good.

Weird, but definitely _very_ good.

Headmaster Crowley was informed by the doctors that their work was done and the rest would be left to the nurse, who was still healing a little bit of Eleanora each day. They fixed the worst part of the damage, so all they could do now was wait. During the waiting period some students would stop by the infirmary and check on the young woman, all of them from Heartslayul.

Some signed the cast on her foot, others just wanted to see if the rumors were true. Less often, students from other dorms would peer in- curious about the comatose magicless student. One from Savanaclaw paused and observed her, silver wolf ears twitching atop his head, an almost sympathetic look in his golden eyes. Then he clicked his tongue and turned away, hands shoved in his pockets as he passed by a group of Heartslabyul students.

Ace and Deuce had Grim with them this time, having been put in charge of watching the cat monster after Cater had left with Trey and Riddle to the school store. The boys were all relieved to see their friend recovering, but her eyes remaining closed still bothered him. Ace looked especially uncomfortable, red eyes flickering with something akin to guilt.

The day after, Cater arrived with Trey and Riddle beside him. The strawberry blond snapped several more photos of Eleanora and posted her status on magicam, letting anyone who was concerned know how she was doing. Only those who followed him could see it, and because of what happened Eleanora gained a few followers herself on the account Cater had made for her. None of that fame or concern altered her medical condition though.

It took three more days before there was any change.

When Riddle went back to the infirmary for his daily check-up, he left a small gift basket on the nightstand beside Eleanora. He left shortly after, unable to bring himself to look at her after all that’s happened, after all that he’s done to hurt her, and as such was unable to see the way she finally started to stir awake.

**The Next Day**

So tired…

What on earth happened? Gods, I can’t remember. What was I even doing before now? I think I had been working, but… I also feel like I wasn’t. In all honesty, it just feels like I’ve been having one super long and extremely crazy dream.

There were ghosts and magic, and even curses. I remember panicking, and I think at one point I was flying. That last part didn’t make much sense though. There were also people; a lot of people I didn’t know. I think we might have been friends. They were all really nice to me for some reason. Gods, what a ride that dream was. Blinking tiredly, my eyes fluttered open and I stared at a ceiling. I could hear a voice, someone talking and then pausing, and then footsteps as they rushed over to me.

The words they spoke didn’t quite reach my ears, and I found myself slowly dozing off again.

The next time I awoke, I was slightly more lucid. I felt a lot more rested as well. It must have been my day off, because there was no way I would let myself sleep in this long if I had to get up for work. But then again… I could have just forgotten. Did I have an alarm set on my phone? What was my schedule for the week? Ugh, I should probably check to be safe, but I feel so lazy right now. I really don’t want to.

I just want to curl further into my blankets and sleep.

I yawned, my legs stretching out as I decided to make myself face the day. My lungs stuttered as they took oxygen in-and-out, the air oddly fresh and crisp. The filter was working exceptionally well today, wasn’t it? How lovely. I could still go for a breathing treatment, but that was after I finished waking up and have used my daily inhalers.

After all, if I don’t get up now I’ll stay in bed the rest of the day. It was pretty lame.

Yawning again, I let out a sigh and opened my eyes, blinking a few times until my vision adjusted. That was when I paused, coming to the understanding that something was _very_ very wrong. I didn’t recognize that ceiling. I… wasn’t in my room. The things pulling on my arms- needles? Why am I attached to I.Vs? What’s going on?

_Where… Where am I!?_

Wait, this outfit… I looked down at the white t-shirt I was wearing, brown eyes wide as they gazed at the blood covering the front. This wasn’t mine.

_Oh no. Oh, no, no, no._

It wasn’t a dream, was it? This place- it was the infirmary, right? I vaguely remember being here before.

I winced, struggling to sit up, and wheezed slightly when I finally succeeded. An arm wrapped around my wounded abdomen, I stared in alarm at the thick bandages around my foot. A cast was discarded beside the bed, with many names written in colorful sharpie on it, and on my face was some sort of oxygen mask.

 _Damn it._ I could feel the tears stinging my eyes. _This is… the school infirmary, isn’t it?_

This was reality. I was in Twisted Wonderland still. But that means… what, exactly? I survived? That dream I had wasn’t a dream at all; I really did get the ever living crap beat out of me. There was a decisive match and a whole lot of yelling. Magic, trees, and even paint cans had been soaring through the air in a spiral of chaos, and I... remember Riddle succumbing to darkness.

_Oh gods, Riddle._

He was okay, wasn’t he? Why isn’t he in the infirmary, too? Where-

_Where is everyone?_

I’m scared. How long have I been asleep? Are the boys okay? What about Grim? The ghosts? Wait, how am I breathing properly? My attention snapped to that the instant I noticed it, hand rising up to my throat. No pain. Did someone heal me? Was there another potion involved? I couldn’t feel the usual weight of thorns in my chest, and for the first time in days my throat felt clear. There wasn’t any iron taste on my tongue. Wait.

No… iron taste. No blood?

I… I don’t…

_I don’t know what’s happening._

I slumped and slid back down onto the mattress, staring up into nothing as I tried to process the situation. Looking up at the ceiling, I did my best to breathe in time to the oxygen mask I was wearing. I was so used to something blocking the airways that actually having the ability to _breathe_ was a little overwhelming.

I still can’t believe… that I was alive. I really survived.

Just how was this possible? I should have died, right? By all means I should be dead. I won’t complain, but like… it didn’t make any sense. Ah, what’s that? I turned my head and blinked, staring blankly at the basket on the nightstand. Carefully making myself sit up again, I leaned over to get a better look at it. There was an entire bouquet of flowers in there, full of daisies and peonies. Huh.

_Those are pretty._

A part of me wondered if they were for someone, or if they had always been there. If they were for someone, who? Me? As if. I sighed and scooted until my back was against the bedframe, leaning my head back. I can’t believe I really let myself believe I was home. How stupid could I be? I knew this was reality.

But surviving…

Just how did I do it? What happened to the curse? I doubt it was broken. Was it connected to the Overblot somehow? Did I overcome it in a dream and I just don’t remember? There were so many things I still needed to learn, and yet… I had no way to actually learn them.

How exhausting.

_Creeeaaak._

I turned my head and blinked, staring in surprise at the adult who just walked into the room. The nurse. He looked at me startled, but it didn’t last very long. Within moments he was hurrying over, checking my vitals and asking me questions, and when it was deemed safe he unhooked the oxygen mask I was wearing. He informed me of what injuries I sustained and what had been done to fix them, but didn’t have a single clue as to what happened about the rose.

“...Rose?”

As it turns out, the man could see the rose. I was still the only one who was aware of what it actually was, but the curse had spread so dangerously fast that the rose in my mouth had bloomed so far up my throat in reality that even those who weren’t fae could view it. The nurse assumed the rose happened due to the Overblot, that I had been cursed during the battle- something of which I knew wasn’t true, but had nodded along with anyway. I still didn’t want to share what little I knew about it. After debriefing me on everything, the man removed one of the I.Vs and took my temperature. He also handed me several different inhalers and set up a breathing treatment- _thank gods-_ so I finally had proper medicine to help with my asthma. He then informed me that if I wanted to walk around later I would have to use one of the school crutches, as my foot still wasn’t in good condition yet.

_What a pain._

I would rather just limp, honestly. I slumped back into bed, scrunching my nose up as I processed today’s events and the information that I had miraculously survived.

The next day went by relatively smoothly; the man removed the only other I.V attached to me. I got to watch him heal my foot and ribs, which was certainly an interesting process. I wasn’t exactly fond of magic for… obvious reasons, but this was okay. This didn’t harm me in any way, shape, or form, so I was down for being healed. He also helped me walk around the room a bit to help get my legs back into working use, seeing as I had been asleep for almost a whole week. He left after that to update the headmaster on my current status, leaving me alone in the room for a while. 

That's why I was so surprised when someone knocked on the infirmary door. 

“Ellie~!” I heard a familiar voice sing as the door slowly opened. “Today’s the day you wake up; I’m sure of it! Know why? Because I-”

Cater cut himself off halfway, frozen in the doorway as our eyes locked. Tucked against his side was a little dark brown teddy bear with a white ribbon wrapped around its neck. Trey and Riddle stood beside him, equally stunned, and the silence was only broken when I awkwardly raised a hand up- waving at them. “Uh… hi? Eleanora here.”

Did they get the reference? Probably not. Did it snap them out of their shock? Most definitely.

“E-Ellie, you…” Cater took a step forward, baffled. “You’re actually awake? You did just talk right now, didn’t you?”

I looked down at myself, gazing at my scarred palms and then the back of my hands. I patted my face. “I mean, I think I did. I could be wrong, though. My memory is pretty awful. But, yeah, I’m pretty sure.” I nodded, casually giving them a shrug. “I think I’m awake. Unless, you know, you’re all just figments of my imagination.”

I tilted my head, seeing the redhead behind them.

“Are you…? Yeah! Riddle! How are you feeling?” Silence. The third-years looked at me with wide eyes and then glanced down at the second-year next to them, Riddle visibly shaken by something. I grinned, reaching out and waving my hand at him as a gesture for him to come closer. “You’re doing okay, right? Not hurt or anything?”

“You…” Riddle breathed, stepping forward.

I hummed, eyebrows raised as I looked at him curiously, smile never dropping. “What’s up?”

His shoulders scrunched up and his lips curled back, hands balling into fists. He took another step forward, before seeming to restrain himself from approaching any closer. “You… don’t you… _no.”_ He shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. Riddle then looked at me, storm grey eyes misty and wet with tears. “Aren’t you mad at me?”

“Uh… for what?”

“I _hurt_ you!” Oh. Oh boy. Riddle forced himself to take a step forward, voice shaking as he approached. “I said such _awful_ things to you a-and then… when I transformed… I seriously hurt you! I’m the reason why you’re in here! I’m the reason why you were asleep for so long! I-I thought… I thought that…”

He looked down, trembling as the tears started to fall. Trey reached a hand out to comfort him, but the boy pulled away.

“Don’t.” Riddle told him, brushing his bangs back with his fingers, sniffling. “Don’t touch me. I don’t… deserve your kindness. I-I hurt _all_ of you. And, Eleanora, I…”

Riddle looked up, walking over until he was a few feet away from my bed. Biting down hard on his lip, it was clear it was taking everything he had to keep what little remained of his composure.

“I hurt you the most. I could have killed you; I almost _did_ kill you. I-If you hated me or… wanted nothing more to do with me, I’d understand. If you… if you wanted to _hit_ me for what I did, I’d… understand that, too. I was a terrible person. I still _am_ a terrible person. But… I-I also want to make amends, so… just tell me what to do! What you _want_ to do!”

He bowed his head, as if fully expecting me to lash out. Meanwhile, I was completely silent- unable to believe what was happening. He really thought I would hurt him, didn’t he?

“I’ll accept it all!”

This poor child- seriously, what in the hell did his mother put him through? I remember seeing glimpses of his past, but it wasn’t like I saw the whole record of it. Blinking away the tears forming in my eyes, I ignored the heartbroken expression of Cater and Trey and faced the sad child in front of me. “Riddle...”

“Y-Yes?”

I shifted on the mattress, careful not to hurt my bad foot, and dangled my legs off the side of the bed. This kid needed all of the hugs. He was clearly deprived of them growing up. Carefully sliding off the mattress, I ignored the boys’ startled shouts and protests of me standing when my foot was still injured, instead focusing on holding my arms out- my brown eyes staring at Riddle expectantly. My legs almost gave out on me for a moment, but I remained standing. “Hug me.”

He blinked once, twice. When my words finally registered in his brain, his face lit up in a light shade of red. Riddle took a step back, hands curled close to his chest. “Wh-What?”

“I’m super sad,” I told him, pouting, “and I want a hug. We’re friends, aren’t we?”

Riddle faltered at that. Gods, he was so cute. Just plain precious. I watched as he hesitated, the boy clearly not used to performing such an action, simple as it was. His face a bit red, Riddle did as told and stepped forward, awkwardly wrapping his arms around my waist when I curled my own arms around his shoulders.

Aw, frick, I just realized; I’ve been asleep for several days. I probably smell awful.

Unless someone cast an automatic shower spell or something… is that a thing? Is that a spell mages can use? I don’t know. Ah, well, we’re too far in to the hug to stop now. Riddle has a surprisingly tiny waist. This was also the closest to a guy I’ve ever been, the sleepover with Ace and Deuce not included, but that part wasn’t really important right now.

“You seriously need to relax.” I told him, trying to seem indifferent and nonchalant for as long as I could. His hair smelled a little fruity- like he used some kind of strawberry shampoo. Actually, it might be raspberry; I’m not sure. Either way, it was nice. At least one of us were clean. “The more you think about it, the weirder it’s gonna feel. Besides, I’m super sad and I need all the hugs right now, so. Yeah. I’m not letting go until I feel better.”

Riddle faltered upon hearing that. Slowly but surely he began to loosen up, moving closer and hugging me properly. The whole reason I was doing this was so that _he_ could let out some of his emotions, as a really good hug could do wonders sometimes, and it was finally starting to work. Before long he was burying his face in my shoulder, shaking as he held tight to my waist, the boy crying as silently as he could.

I pat him on the head, running my fingers through his hair and closing my eyes, just letting him soak my shirt up with tears. Sometime during this I remembered that Trey and Cater were still in the room and looked up at them, flashing them an awkward smile. The third-years both looked dumbfounded and amused when I waved at them secretly, and after a few seconds the two men looked respectfully to the side.

Seriously, though- if I ever do meet Riddle’s mother I was going to have to beat her face in. This poor boy has had so many emotions pent up over the years; it’s a miracle it was only recently he had a breakdown.

“I’m sorry,” He whimpered, tightening his hold around me, “I’m sorry!”

I ran my fingers gently up-and-down across his back, trying to mimic what my sister always did for me, voice soft. “It’s okay. I forgive you. I’m not mad.”

“I’m sorry…!”

“I won’t hurt you.”

Riddle sobbed for a while more, before suddenly pausing and sniffling, pulling away and looking at the basket on the nightstand. “O-Oh, I… I forgot. Did you… Did you look at the card?”

Okay, now that he wasn’t clinging to me this felt _really_ weird. I became all too aware that his hands were still on my waist. A little flustered now, resisting the urge to back away, I flickered my eyes to the basket and then at the boy in front of me. “U-Um, no, I wasn’t- I, uh, didn’t want to look through it in case it belonged to someone else, so…”

“You realize you’re the only patient in the infirmary, right?” Trey finally spoke, clearing his throat. He kept his fist over his mouth, eyes shifting from the basket to us, and I knew right away it was because he was uncomfortable. Cater looked a little uncomfortable himself, not that I blamed them. Anyone standing in a room with a crying person would be uncomfortable. “Of course it was for you.”

“O-Okay, well, I didn’t want to _assume_.”

Cater gave a weak laugh at that. “You really are a strange one, Ellie.”

I stuck my tongue out at them. Riddle sniffled and wiped at his face, but then his eyes went wide and his cheeks turned a bright red as he realized the position we were in. He fumbled to release me, stammering several apologies and covering his face, quickly running to hide behind Trey who looked a mixture of amused and exasperated.

Gratefully taking the distraction, I reached out and grabbed the basket, pulling it onto my lap as I sat back down on the bed. I was able to get a better look at the flowers, which were still super pretty, and I found my name sprawled across a card. Worrying my bottom lip, I pulled the card out and opened it- surprised to see several familiar names written down along with the names of students who I didn’t yet know.

And in the middle of the card was a little hand-written message.

“The flowers are hardly enough to apologize for everything I’ve done,”I read aloud, “but I do hope you’ll enjoy them. When you’ve awoken and are able to eat, please feel free to enjoy the sweets Trey made. He’s a very excellent baker. Sincerely... Riddle Rosehearts. Wait, sweets?”

I blinked at that. I looked up at Trey, who looked just a _teensy bit_ embarrassed, the man turning away with pink cheeks, a hand scratching the back of his neck.

“Aww, you made me something?” Oh my gosh, okay. These people were way too nice to me. I’m not even that fond of sweets, but damn it- if Trey made them I guess I’ll eat them. I looked down at the basket, lifting up the bouquet. “What kind are they?”

I dug around the inside of the basket for a bit until I found a small plastic container with several muffins. They appeared to be blueberry, and they looked _really_ good. I guess Trey figured out I wasn’t toobig on sweets during the mont blanc incident, because blueberry muffins were a good medium between sweet and bitter.

I really wanted to go ahead and devour them.

I looked up, beaming at the trio of boys. I could feel my eyes start to water, the heart within my chest filling with an incredible warmth. “Thank you~! I seriously don’t deserve you guys. Flowers _and_ muffins? It’s not even my birthday.”

Ah, there it was. Riddle did his best to hide the little smile on his face, and Trey let out a small chuckle while Cater laughed. “Well, what’d you expect, Ellie?”

A small yelp left my lips when the strawberry blond stepped over and plopped down beside me on the bed, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. I almost dropped the container in the process, fumbling to catch it when it slipped out of hands to prevent it from crushing the bouquet of flowers.

“Oi, Cater! Be careful.” I heard Trey scold, the man walking over with Riddle by his side. He placed his hands on his hips, leaning down with a stern expression, though his eyes glimmered playfully. “She hasn’t fully recovered yet.”

“Sorry, sorry.” The strawberry blond apologized, grin still on his lips as he pulled away. His expression brightened when he saw me staring at him with wide eyes. “But anyway, if you really wanna be spoiled, check this out! Tada~!” Next thing I knew, a bundle of dark brown fur was in my face. “Check it! Super cute, isn’t he? Went to the school store earlier, and thought this would be perfect! Girls love stuffed animals, right?”

“Uh, s-some girls, yeah.” I answered, surprised. Movements a little stiff, I took the bear he had been holding, turning it to face me and staring at it. It had cute black eyes and a little white ribbon wrapped around its neck. In its hands was a heart that read _Get well soon!_ It was adorable. “Thank you. You guys didn’t… have to do all this, but, uh, I appreciate it.”

I flashed them all a small smile, a little overwhelmed by their kindness.

“Thank you!”

Cater stared at me, stunned, before he beamed and wrapped his arms around me again. I tensed, instantly uncomfortable as he nuzzled my hair. “Aww, you have such a cute smile! I wish you would smile at me more often, Ellie~! Ten out of ten. The cutest!”

Trey quickly raised a hand up, ready to hit the man if he must, all playfulness gone as he gave a final warning. “ _Cater.”_

The strawberry blond pouted. “Fine, fine. You’re so scary, vice dorm head.”

He released me, though still kept one arm wrapped around my shoulders. It was uncomfortable, but I didn’t really have the strength or energy to push him off. I was still trying to process everything. I really couldn’t fathom why they were so kind to me, or why they went out of their way to bring me gifts.

“Um, seriously though… thanks. I, uh, don’t know really know how I can repay you guys for everything.”

Trey folded his arms over his chest with a small grin looking down at me. “You can repay us by getting better. You really worried us for a while, you know? Ace, Deuce, and Grim are driving us insane.”

Oh jeez. I made a face, just imagining the chaos. “What happened?”

Trey paused, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath as he pushed up his glasses. “Well… that’s a bit of a loaded question.”

“Please tell me no statues got charred.”

“Not yet.” Riddle spoke, sniffling one more time as he regained his composure. “I’ve been having them help clean up the rose garden.”

Ah. Yeah, that makes sense. “When’s the revenge party, by the way?”

“We haven’t decided yet.” Riddle informed, standing straight. He fixed his tie and folded his arms across his chest, looking more like the boy I first met forever ago and less like the sad child he had been revealed to be. “It can be held on any day, as long as it’s not on anyone’s birthday and before the twenty-third of September. Our primary focus at the moment is cleaning up the rose garden. Once that’s done, then we’ll be setting the party date.”

“Oooh. Okay.” I set the bear down in my lap, the gift basket on the other side of me. “Why the twenty-third?”

“That’s when Ace’s birthday is.” Trey explained.

“Wait really?” Holy crap, we were both born in the same month. My eyes went wide. “He’s a _libra?_ So much makes sense now.”

Cater laughed at that and I jumped- definitely not used to the closeness. I was only comfortable being near certain people, and as nice as he was sometimes he definitely didn’t fit into that category yet. He leaned in and I leaned back, trying to get some distance between us. “I didn’t know you were into astrology, Ellie!’ He exclaimed, smile wide. “What’s your star sign? I’m an aquarius.”

“Uh, I-I mean, I learned about it for giggles mostly... I’m a virgo.”

“Ehh, really? So’s Riddle! Trey’s a Scorpio.”

“What!?" I whirled around at that, baffled. Eyes wide, I gazed up at the green-haired third-year in question. I never would have guessed that. "No way.”

“Yes way.” Cater grinned. He leaned over, holding a hand up and whispering conspiratorially, not at all bothered by the way Trey was staring down at us sternly, his arms crossed with an eyebrow raised. “I’m telling you, there’s a secret side of him he doesn’t like to show people! Given the chance, he could be totally manipula-”

“Now, now, Cater,” Trey began, cutting him off with a dangerous smirk on his face, daring the man to continue, his index finger tapping against his arm, “you shouldn’t be filling her brain with that kind of thing. Don’t go around spreading lies.”

The strawberry blond laughed, waving him off. “Aw, I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Trey rolled his eyes. “Sure you don’t. Anyway, we should leave and give Eleanora some time to rest. She’s just woken up, after all.”

Cater slumped over and pouted. “Aw, really? Spoil sport. Oh, hold on! Before we leave…”

The man pulled out his phone, grinning at me. There was a flash and I cringed, leaning back after I was temporarily blinded. “Dude, what the heck!? Warning first!”

“Sorry, sorry.” He apologized half-heartedly, already hitting several buttons on his phone screen. “Gotta let everyone know you’re doing okay. Hashtag "recovery process", hashtag “totally awake”, hashtag “Ellie lives”, hashtag “isn’t she so cute with that bear”. Annnd post! Perfect. You’re gonna have your own fanclub in no time!”

Cater beamed at me and I made a face, not at all pleased with that information. “Uh, no thanks.”

“Too late.” He stuck his tongue out me. Cater then removed his arm from me and stood, ruffling my hair, and tucked his phone back into his pocket. “Alright! I’m ready to go. What about you, dorm leader?”

Riddle gave a small nod. “Yes.” He let out a sigh. “I’m really hoping no one’s caused any trouble while we’ve been away. I know I’ve been a bit too strict in the past, but still… just because I’m trying to loosen up now doesn’t mean I’ll forgive any rule breakers.”

“But if those rules are minor or silly in nature…” Trey added casually, placing a hand on the redhead’s shoulder, leaning down closer to his height with an encouraging smile. Riddle paused. 

The dorm leader turned his head away, pouting a little. “I’ll… make the punishment less severe, or... something.”

Trey beamed, looking rather proud of him. “Good. Baby steps, Riddle. We don’t have to make any big changes right off the bat.”

He’s… really come a long way, hasn’t he?

I observed the three of them, not quite sure what I was feeling. I was happy they cared and relieved to see they were all unharmed, and even a bit proud to see a certain redhead learning from his past mistakes, but I was still scared. Scared that I would never return home. I wanted to see my family so bad.

Maybe that hug earlier _was_ meant for Riddle, but now…? I really wanted one for myself.

Just… maybe not from Cater.

I squeezed the bear in my arms, leaning down and resting my chin atop its head, zoning out as I thought about everything that’s occurred since my arrival to this world. It’s been, what- almost two weeks? I was asleep for the majority of that time, but the fact that I was here still remained. I wondered if people were still looking for me back home.

The bouquet, the muffins, the stuffed animal… they were all from people who cared- even if they didn’t know me for very long. It could have been done out of obligation, but them stopping by and visiting like this… chatting with me… convinced me otherwise. They really were my friends. Real friends. Not fake ones who would replace me once they got bored.

“H-Hey, uh, guys?” I called out weakly when they were about to walk out the door. The trio paused, turning to look at me in curiosity. Their eyes widened when they saw me smile shakily at them, tears burning my face. “I-I’m really glad you came by. Thank you.”

None of them seemed to have expected that. They all looked a little red in the face, and Trey awkwardly pushed up his glasses. “Of course.” The green-haired third-year said, smiling as he opened the door. “You’re one of us now.”

Riddle gave a shy little nod at that, and Cater beamed. “We already told you before, Ellie. Heartslabyul is your safehouse! We’re here for you. Now you get better fast, okay? We want you there at the revenge party!”

Right. Of course. I laughed a little at that, sniffling and wiping at my face. “I make no promises, but I’ll try.”

I watched as the door closed behind them, all the energy draining from me the instant they left. Sighing heavily, I fell onto my back on the bed, hugging the bear to my chest. Now that they had been mentioned, I found myself wishing that Ace and Deuce were here. Heck, even Grim. We’ve been together ever since my arrival in this world, so being without them… was actually a little lonely.

Oh, who am I kidding? It was super lonely. I was more comfortable with them than anyone else in this place. If I was going to get a hug from anyone, I would want it to be from them. I miss them. I miss home. I miss my family.

My lips curled back and I choked, burying my face in the back of the bear’s head as I rolled onto my side and curled into a ball. I couldn’t even feel the ache in my left foot. I was just… sad. Not bitter, not angry, not hurt. Only sad. Sad and lonely and scared, and those feelings washed away any physical pain I could feel.

Before long, as the tears continued to fall in silence, an emptiness started to form, and I found myself wondering if I could truly bring myself to accept this new life. It wasn’t the first time I questioned it, but it was certainly the first time things felt so permanent. The only bright side was that I had friends to help me.

Even if I felt guilty for lying about my curse and for worrying them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Riddle is a sub. There, I said it. XD He is one hundred percent sub material- unless he's with Floyd. Then he is a bratty sub. 
> 
> Also this chapter was really hard to write. Whether that was because of writer's block or because of the craziness happening with my family at the moment, I don't really know, but I got it done. So yayyyy~ this chapter is a thing. Also I realized Riddle's birthday is late August, but his birthday card hasn't been revealed yet... hmm... I don't want to skip over it, but... I don't know. There just might not be an interview. She might wish a happy birthday and that's it. We'll find out. 
> 
> Also Malleus was fighting me hard in this one. Everyone was just fighting me, I guess. I was trying to leave the nurse out since we don't have a proper face or character for them, but the chapter refused to happen without the nurse so I'm just low-key imagining a twisted male version of Yzma from Emperor's New Groove. But that's why there aren't really any spoken lines for him, lol. Hopefully this chapter was enjoyable. I tried to add in a little fluff, but angst won out in the end- as always with my writing. 
> 
> ACE, DEUCE, GRIM WHERE ARE YA? YO GIRL EL NEEDS SOME HUGS
> 
> Anyway, thanks so much for all the comments last chapter! I was super anxious about it, so I'm really glad you guys enjoyed it. :3 I had been planning that massive reveal forever. Welp, as always- thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day/night wherever you are! <3


	27. Peace Of Mind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me last chapter: I'm gonna leave the nurse anonymous in case the game ever reveals them!
> 
> Also me: (Makes an entire character sheet, including unique magic and what dorm he used to be in before he graduated) His name is this, and he looks like this, and he's twisted from both Yzma and Kronk, similar to how Silver is twisted from both Princess Aurora and the silver sword that slayed Maleficent, and-

I sat there as still as possible, regulating my breathing and obeying the demands of the school nurse. It almost felt like a typical check-up at the hospital back home with my lung specialist. As such I remained awkward and uncomfortable, keeping my eyes facing forward and away from the person listening to my heartbeat and lungs. Having my vitals checked felt especially weird this time, but whether that was because I was in another world or because the school nurse was as gorgeous as every other person I met here in Twisted Wonderland I wasn’t sure.

Seriously- now that I had mostly recovered and could think properly I was able to focus on just how pretty he really was. With his brown skin and dark violet hair, he was quite the dreamboat. His hair was worn in an undercut style, shaved for the most part, with curly bangs brushed to the side. His lavender eyes were accented by his surprisingly long lashes, blue eyeshadow, and dark mascara, and he wore a white lab coat with black elbow-length gloves.

Underneath you could make out a skintight turtleneck, and if it weren’t for the memory of several teachers outfits I would have wondered how this was considered school appropriate attire. He… actually sort of reminded me of someone, but who I wasn’t sure; and trying to remember only gave me a headache. Having grown used to that and having learned the causes behind it, I could only assume that he reminded me of a person the curse has made me forget.

“And you don’t feel any dizziness?” The man questioned gently. “No nausea or pain?”

Gods, I really hate this school. All the pretty men have to have such wonderful voices, but instead of deep chocolate or low velvet this one had a voice like honey. Smooth and gentle, and crazy sweet. Oh, why did he have to be the school nurse? I wish he let the curse just kill me, because I can’t handle this. He was so distracting it was hard to actually listen to his questions.

“Uh, n-no.” I stammered, praying my face wasn’t too red. I tried to look at the wall, but he kept purposefully moving into view. “My ankle still hurts a bit, but other than that… I’m good.”

Just breathe. Man, I’m still so happy I finally have medicine.

Apparently a certain teacher- _cough Divus cough-_ informed the doctors when they arrived about my medical condition, because the headmaster was too forgetful to actually do so. It was a little hard to believe, but after recalling the way he acted when I had my attacks the first day or two reminded me that there was more to him than what meets the eye.

He was a teacher for a reason, after all, though where I’m from that doesn’t really mean a whole lot. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I was glad he had a compassionate side to him; despite his strange ways, he did care for his students. I was going to have to thank him later, even if… I’m a little scared to face him after missing so many days of class.

I’m so not ready for that conversation.

When the nurse finally pulled away- allowing me to finally catch a glimpse of the nametag he had dangling from his lab coat pocket- I picked up the bag the portable nebulizer and inhalers were in, setting them on my lap and cradling them close like they were my lifeline. I was never gonna let these go. They were mine. I went through enough chaos without them, and I refuse to do so again.

“Poma Salvador?” I said, catching his attention and hoping I said his name correctly.

He paused, looking at me in surprise. “Oh, did I not tell you? My apologies.”

Nurse Salvador reached into his pocket, stethoscope now around his neck. The man spinning on his heel to face me, I stared blankly at the piece of candy he was holding out to me, a smile bright on his lips.

“Here! For being such a good patient and student.”

Well, uh… okay. I blinked, dumbfounded by the childlike treatment, and took the sucker. Tootsie Roll pops were okay, I guess, and this was a dark blue one. “Thank… you?”

I really wasn’t expecting that. Unwrapping the sucker, I popped it into my mouth and checked the wrapper- surprised to find that there were little witch hats decorating it and a… cauldron? Cool. I wonder if the whole “make a wish” thing upon finding a shooting star counted in this world as well. Only, obviously, when you find a cauldron instead. If so, I wish for a freaking break. I’m exhausted.

Tucking the wrapper inside my dirtied pants pocket, I carefully rearranged the gift basket- bear on top of muffin container, flowers on top of bear, and then I grabbed the basket. Holding it with one hand and the bag of medicine with the other, I started to stand.

“Now, remember-” Nurse Salvador started to say, taking on an oddly motherly tone, “don’t put too much weight on your left foot. Are you sure you don’t want me to call up one of your friends? I’m sure they’d be willing to help you walk. They were all so worried when you were asleep.”

“It’s fine.” I flashed a closed-eye grin. “I want to get these to the dorm and change first before I see them. I don’t know about you, but, uh… I seriously need a shower.”

“Ah…” He paused. “Yes, I suppose that’s true. Very well. But if anything feels off- _anything at all_ \- come see me. I’m sure your teachers won’t mind you missing a few minutes of class for a check-up after all that’s happened, especially with your health condition.”

The teachers might not mind, but I certainly will. Still, I was grateful for the concern.

“I think I’ll be good.” I beamed, hugging the bag of medicine protectively. “Now that I finally got these, I should be _great!”_

I snapped my fingers with a dramatic wink, clicking my tongue against my teeth as I stepped back towards the door. A small flash of pain shot up my left leg, but I ignored it and limped towards the door. Nurse Salvador chuckled, hand to his chin. “Yes, I suppose so. Well, take care! Don’t push yourself too hard, Miss Quince.”

“Bye~!”

I left the infirmary.

My shoulders slumped immediately, a sigh escaping my lips once I was out of sight. I’m so tired. For having slept so long, I still could go for a nap. A part of me wondered if it was because I was still covered in dirt and grime and bloody clothes, or if it was just the mental strain from dealing with so much craziness at once. Not really having the strength to figure out it, only able to focus on my current task, I looked both ways in the hallway before furrowing my brows and taking off, limping to where I thought the exit was.

It was still the same day I had been visited by Riddle, Trey, and Cater, but several hours had passed since that early morning visitation. I think it was currently the class period after lunch. Ah, I am so not ready for classes. I think I went to them on day one and that was it. Maybe some of day two?

So much happened I honestly don’t remember. It’s all a giant blur, save for the more traumatizing bits. I know that things _happened_ and I can recall them vividly, but the time they took place and what day they were was all muddled. I really do need to thank Divus later though.

If not for him telling the doctors about my asthma…

At least _someone_ in this school felt compassion, unlike a certain bird man. Yeah, I’m looking at you, Headmaster Crowley. I hope Divus beats you with his riding crop for being so neglectful. Jerk.

Although, I guess it _is_ the headmaster who’s paying for my food and all the treatment, so maybe I can give him a little slack. Even if I still don’t like him. Crunching down hard on the sucker I was eating, I pulled the stick out and threw it in a nearby trashcan, swallowing the tootsie roll part soon after.

I have a whole list of things I needed to do now…

Get to the dorm and bathe, find an outlet to hook up my nebulizer to, clean either a tall glass or vase for the flowers (assuming the dorm even has one) and fill it with water, thank Divus for his input about my asthma, apologizing to him for missing so much class, collect all the make-up work for my many classes, maybe help clean up the rose garden, and find a certain dragon fae and inform him on what happened.

Gods, I really hope he doesn’t hate me. Mr. Horns made it clear that he had been forgotten several times before, so he might think I forgot about our meeting too. Worse, he might think I stood him up. Frick.

I groaned, lowering my head and cringing.

I really don’t know want him to hate me. That would be just my luck, too. He must think I’m a terrible human being. I need to check in with Ace and Deuce, too, and see how they and Grim are doing. They’re probably mad at me for nearly dying on them.

So much to do and so little time…

I’m not ready for all that confrontation. I’m not ready for anymore socializing today, actually. My eyes are still a bit puffy from when I cried earlier. I’m a wreck. I didn’t want anyone to see me in this state; not when I was still feeling so vulnerable. I just need some time to unwind. To process everything.

There was still the matter of my curse, too. I couldn’t feel the stabs of pain in my chest or the petals that were normally stuck in my throat. They were just… gone. Not even the nurse knew what happened, of course- he didn’t even know the meaning of the curse or how it occurred in the first place. I certainly didn’t tell him.

The only people who _did_ know were the two faes I encountered.

_Mr. Horns…_

I came to a slow halt, staring into nothing as I worried my bottom lip.

_He doesn’t actually believe that I forgot him, does he?_

It’s silly, but I really don’t want him to hate me. Not before we could actually become friends. I wanted to talk to him so much more, to find out so many things. What he liked and disliked, his favorite foods and colors. Just anything and everything. Heck, did he have a favorite animal? Little things like that.

I won’t even make him tell me his name- not until he wanted to tell me. But… to think that it was all over before it could even start… hurt.

My chest tightened and a lump formed in my throat, and blinking away the tears I inhaled deeply. Approaching the front doors, I opened them and carefully made my way down the stairs, cringing every time I had to put pressure on my left foot. It was fine. Everything was fine. I was going to get to the dorm, do everything I had to do, and talk to the dragon fae.

Everything was going to go well.

_But what if it doesn’t?_

No. Stop it. Too many negative things have happened already; I needed to be positive.

Like, come on- I beat death! Somehow. The curse seemed to be… pulling away for some reason, and I finally had some medication for my asthma! My ribs are healed and so are the majority of my other wounds. I still have a few cuts here and there, sure, and my left foot needed another week to heal, but I was alive! There’s so much to be cheerful about.

_So why is it so hard?_

I walked the rest of the way with my head hung low, the emptiness in my chest only growing. Main Street was quiet, nobody in sight, and that only strengthened the feeling of loneliness. When I passed the library, nearing the mystery shop and gymnasium, I could finally hear voices in the distance- a class taking place in the sports field. I didn’t bother to look, instead taking the turn I needed to get to my dorm, walking another fifteen minutes.

Passing the botanical garden and alchemy workshop, I could see myself approaching the gate to Ramshackle.

I stopped in front of it, looking up at the hill and recalling the previous meeting I had with a certain immortal before everything went wrong. The sleepover I had with my friends. The card games with them and the ghosts. It was only recently, but it felt so long ago. I wondered how they felt about everything.

Ace was constantly remarking on my health and telling me not to die, but then I almost did. I was convinced I had. Deuce was such a worrywart, too; I’m not even sure how he would react. Would they be relieved or mad at me? What about Grim? How did he feel? What was he thinking? Without me, he couldn’t participate in this school.

We were two halves of one student.

Thinking about all of this is only making me more upset… yet I can’t help it. I was going to have to face them eventually. That isn’t even mentioning Moe, Larry, and Curly who I was going to be talking to in just a few minutes. Dragging myself up the hill, I wheezed a little and stopped by the front door. I was shaking.

Not out of dizziness, but anxiety. I really wasn’t ready to deal with people.

So, steeling myself as best as I could, I took a deep breath and opened the door.

I let out a sneeze almost immediately- dust fluttering into my face as sunlight shone through the cracks of the old wooden walls, unevenly lighting the dark abandoned building in several places. Without thorns in my chest and blood messing with my senses, I was once again reminded of just how _musty_ this place was. It was quiet, though, which was… nice.

Lonely, but nice. Loud noises weren’t something I could deal with right now.

I wandered over to the lounge area, staring up at the staircase, before deciding not to deal with that as I did not have the energy and instead limped over to the couch, setting my things down on it and collapsing on the cushions. Eyes sliding shut and a hand on my stomach, I melted into the couch and breathed- ignoring the occasional coughs all the dust would bring out of me.

I just… needed to rest. Rest and not think, and not feel. Just for a little while.

For a few minutes… I needed to not exist.

…

Hmm…?

I groggily opened my eyes. Did I actually fall asleep? Shifting in place and letting out a loud yawn, I slowly began to stretch.

Smacking my lips together and feeling how dry my mouth was, I came to the conclusion that I did, in fact, fall asleep. I actually felt rather well rested, too, which meant there hadn’t been any cursed dreams. This sensation felt foreign to me, weirdly enough. I guess I had grown accustomed to the sleep deprivation.

I also couldn’t taste any blood, which was honestly both amazing and terrifying- for while it was gone now, there was the possibility it might come back. Stretching once more and yawning as loud as I could before slumping against the cushions and coughing, I rolled off the couch and stumbled with a yelp- feeling pain shoot up my leg again. Frick, yeah, my ankle. That’s a thing. Ow.

Man, am I actually _awake?_

What time is it? One thirty? I was asleep for a while. School was almost over for the day. Picking up the bag of medicine, I made my way upstairs and looked around the room for an outlet. I found one eventually, hiding behind my broken down bedframe, and I set the nebulizer on the dresser next to it. Placing my inhalers in the drawer beneath after some light dusting, I picked up my ceremonial uniform and undergarments, and headed to the bath area.

 _“Eh? E-Eleanora?”_ Frick. That sounded like Curly.

Awkwardly turning my head, I looked over to see the chubby ghost poke his body out halfway from the wall. His eyes were wide as he stared at me. I waved, customer service persona automatically turning on as I beamed. “Hey~ how’s it going? Been a while, huh?”

I blinked when he disappeared back into the wall. Oookay, then.

I was about to keep walking when suddenly a flash of cold ran through me and I yelped, shivering, but then the ghosts that flew through me realized their mistake and whirled around, attacking me in one giant group ghost hug as they made themselves solid. I froze, quite literally, as chills started to run through me, goosebumps spreading on my skin as their cold forms squeezed me as tight as they could.

 _“We were worried you joined the dead!”_ Larry exclaimed, large arms holding me tight around the shoulders. _“But when your ghost didn’t show up, we figured you crossed over to the other side completely!”_

 _“Don’t scare us like that!”_ Moe cried, tears seeming to fall down his skeletal face. I winced, his bony arms around my waist hurting a little. _“It wouldn’t be the same in this dorm without you! You’re the only friend we had to play and talk with for years!”_

Curly buried his face in my hair, sobbing. _“Don’t die so soon unless you plan on j-joining us as a- as a ghost!”_

“S-Sorry.” I choked out, teeth chattering as the cold worsened. I was shivering. “C-C-Can you l-let g-go, p-please? O-One hug at a t-t-time! F-Freezing me!”

The ghosts hurriedly let go and I shuddered exaggeratedly, trying with all my might to make the chill go away. They all apologized, voices overlapping each other, and keeping my ceremonial uniform tucked to my side I rubbed my arms, wheezing.

“O-Okay. Phew. Sorry. Three at once is… _really_ cold.” I sniffled. Once I was recovered, I smiled at them. “Sorry. I, uh, didn’t mean to scare you. It just… kinda happened.”

Moe and Larry crossed there arms, frowning, while Curly scratched his cheek. The chubby ghost looked at me uncertainly. _“Are you sure you’re okay? There was all that blood you kept coughing up before… and then you were unconscious for so long.”_

Frick. I guess they would have seen those fits. “Uh, yeah. As far as I’m aware. I’m sorry.”

 _“Well,”_ Moe began, letting out a small sigh and unfolding his arms with a relieved smile, _“as long as you’re doing better now.”_

 _“Yup!”_ Larry held his arms up with a grin, and I let out a small squeak when he flew over and hugged me. _“I know we pranked you that one time, but we really do like you! No dying until you’re older, okay?”_

They’re trying really hard to make me emotional. I found myself leaning into the hug, regardless of how cold the dead was, tears forming in my eyes. “Y-Yeah.” I choked out, bringing a hand up and resting it on his arm, eyes squeezing shut as I buried my face in his transparent shoulder. “I’ll try. Thank you.”

Moe and Curly moved over, and I wasn’t sure who was which- but one pet my hair and the other rubbed a hand on my back comfortingly.

 _"We’re here for you.”_ Moe said quietly. _“You probably want some time to yourself, though, right? To calm down?”_ _  
_

Not trusting myself to speak, I simply nodded, strangling the sob that was forming in the back of my throat. I was clinging tight to Larry, doing the best I could to not make any sounds as the tears started to fall. I wasn’t sure when, I wasn’t sure why, but in the few days I was conscious and awake these ghosts have come to feel like family more than friends.

And it was family that I needed more than anything at this moment.

_“Okay. We’ll let you relax. If anyone tries to come in, we’ll scare them away. Sound good?”_

Another nod. I didn’t even have the strength to care about how guilty I was supposed to feel for agreeing to let them freak someone out; I just wanted to relax. “P-Please…”

Curly pulled away, holding his hands up determinedly. _“Alright! You can count on us, Eleanora.”_

Larry and Moe let me step back and breathe, the ghosts watching with sad eyes as I sniffled and wiped at my face. “Th-Thank you. I… I’m sorry. I just…” I cleared my throat, blinking a few times. A weak smile pulled at my lips as I hiccuped. “I’m a bit of mess right now, honestly. I-I should be fine in a bit, but…” 

_“It’s okay.”_ Damn it, Moe. Why you gotta be so nice? He smiled. _“You just relax. We’ll handle the rest.”_

Right. I gave another nod. “O-Okay. Thank you. I’m… I’m gonna go bathe now. I’m sorry.”

With that I inhaled a shaky breath and took off, watching as they phased through the floor to the lower level, preparing to chase off anyone unwanted. Once I was in the bathroom I wasted no time in climbing out of the disgusting dorm uniform and washing off in the shower, letting the hot water fill up in the tub.

Sliding into the bath I let out a pleased sigh, tension seeping away as my muscles and nerves started to ease up and relax. I just sat there for a while, unmoving, letting my body soak in the calming liquid. The fans running kept my lungs functioning decently in all this steam, and after about five minutes I began to move- getting to work scrubbing shampoo and conditioner in my hair.

There was so much dirt and blood; I think I got the most of it out in the shower earlier, but this _feels so good_ to just scrub it clean. Maybe now that all this insanity with the Heartslabyul dorm leader is over I might actually be able to take a self-care day every now and then. I was exhausted.

 _Can I just… stay in this bath forever?_ It feels so heavenly. I never want to leave. _Alley-oop!_ _  
_

Holding my breath, I ducked underwater and scrubbed the soap out of my hair.

_Ah, hygiene, my one true love. If only fate didn’t try to separate us so…_

Rising up I let out a gasp, running my fingers through my bangs and slicking them back. Freedom! I feel so human! Alive! Hot water, you absolute blessing! I love it so much. Wadding over to the edge of the bath, I picked up the bodywash and cleaned myself up, soon moving to shave my legs.

I kicked my feet back-and-forth for a while after, just basking in the feel of being clean and warm. Then, just wanting to not do anything, I floated on my back with my eyes closed. I couldn’t swim to save my life, but floating? Heck yeah. Ahh, so nice. I rolled onto my stomach, yelping when I realized I was in the deep end, and frantically doggy paddled to the edge before getting onto my back again and floating to the shallow side.

There I let out a small giggle, feeling loads better than I had when I arrived to this place earlier today. The ghosts, though dead, were absolute angels.

And despite being extremely reluctant to leave this paradise, which I must have spent at least an hour in, I climbed out of the bath and dried off with a towel, changing into my ceremonial uniform and stretching with a loud yawn. “Yesss~! Oh, I feel _so_ much better.” I slumped over, hanging my head with a lazy smile. “Best bath ever.”

My uniform actually smells pretty clean, too; I couldn’t see any traces of dirt on it at all. The ghosts must have washed it while I was unconscious. I needed to hug them again.

But first- the flowers!

Draining the bath, putting on my apothecary mask, and walking down to the lounge, I flipped over the dining table the boys and I had moved before and dusted it off. Then I went to the kitchen area, searching through cabinets and recoiling at the state of things. I… actually screamed when a couple spiders came crawling, and I went running for the lounge. Not willing to take the boots off, I decided to hold on finding a glass for the bouquet.

“Moe, Larry, Curly! You guys here?”

Ah, yup. They came phasing out of the walls and ceiling. The second they were closely enough I charged, arms out for a hug, only to squeal when I phased through them and tumbled into the couch. Curly busted out into laughter, hands on his belly, and Larry snickered into his fist. Moe looked like he was trying to hide his own amusement, but was sort of failing.

“Ow.” I sat up on my knees, patting the beak of my mask, making a face. “Okay, that’s fair.”

I looked at them curiously.

“It’s okay if I hug you guys, right?”

They only laughed harder, but this time they were floating towards me, wrapping me in their bone-chilling cold ghost arms. It was seriously freezing, but I tried not to mind even as my teeth began to chatter and I started shivering, hugging them all as tight as I could. When the group hug was over I stepped back and pumped a fist into the air.

“Alright! I’m ready. I mean, I’m not really, but I’m as ready as I’m ever going to be to talk to people. Thanks for everything!” I smiled at them, genuine personality finally able to shine through now that I had the nap and alone time I so desperately needed. It was actually fairly close my customer service personality, but one was emotionally draining and the other was not. “I’ll see you guys later.”

 _“Be careful!”_ Moe called as I limped to the door, the ghost watching as I pulled off my mask and tossed it onto the couch.

“Will do! Or, you know, try to!” I left the building.

Now what to do? Who should I tackle first?

I don’t have the slightest idea on how to get into contact with Mr. Horns. I suppose I _could_ just go to Diasomnia and ask if anyone has seen somebody with his description, but… that would feel so awkward. What if Lilia isn’t even there? Still, considering my lack of options it felt like the best possible course of action to take in trying to find him. I’m feeling a little more confident now that I’m awake and refreshed, so I might be able to handle that.

Keyword being “might”.

I needed to clear up this misunderstanding as fast as possible before he decided to permanently hate me. Fixing this was the most urgent on my list of things to do. After that, I would hunt down my friends. Thankfully the Hall of Mirrors was pretty close to my dorm, so it’s just a short jog.

Not that… I can actually jog, but…

Anyway! To Diasomnia! After that, Heartslabyul!

I started my hike down the hill, ignoring the anxiety that was starting to form the more I tried to hype myself up. I can do this. It’s fine! I’m sure he’ll understand things if I just explain them. He won’t hate me. I got this.

I was an amusing human! He should want me around just a little bit longer.

At least, I hope so…

Aw, frick. Why is the Hall of Mirrors so close? I hesitated before entering the giant building, looking around the many mirrors to find the one I was looking for. Ugh, I was shaking. Bad. Stop it. It’s going to be fine. Man, which mirror is it?

Oh! I think I found it. Wow, that’s a really fancy design.

There were wings protruding from the Diasomnia sign at the top, giving off the impression of a large and terrifying dragon. On either side of the mirror itself were two long swords, all carved from stone, and wrapped around the blades were thick thorny vines. Looking at them made nauseous, as all I could think about were the thorny vines that restricted me in my dreams.

I stepped up to the mirror, hesitating as I reached a hand out.

Would this really be okay? Am I even allowed to enter other dorms? I mean, I went to Heartslabyul several times before, but I was with students who were actually a part of that dorm. A lot of people in the school didn’t even like me anyway; they found me disruptive and disgraceful to their prestigious college.

I still remember all the glares and whispers as I went through the hallways with my friends, and the straight-up acidic looks that would be sent my way when they saw how Deuce would carry me around. Heck, there was even that one student who didn’t hesitate to cast magic my way to get rid of the tart my friends worked so hard on. It wouldn’t be a surprise if someone in Diasomnia tried to get rid of me. Just what should I do?

“Maybe if I mention I know Lilia…?”

That might work. He was a super ancient fae, so he must be highly respected.

I was just about to touch the mirror when a voice spoke up behind me, startling me greatly. “You know my father? I mean… Lord Lilia?”

I let out a shriek, nearly jumping out of my skin before whirling around and balancing on my right foot- terrified of my left one touching the ground after such a crazy maneuver. My hands flailed and I latched onto the wall with wide eyes, staring at the newcomer in alarm. “ _Hi!_ Hello. Um, who are you?”

The boy before tilted his head, blinking lazily at me. He was… quite beautiful, though that honestly wasn’t much of a surprise anymore. With silver hair reaching down to the nape of his neck and aurora-colored eyes, he was absolutely breathtaking. He was dressed in the usual school uniform, a neon green vest adorning his torso. He looked around Trey or Riddle’s age, though one could make out the muscles beneath his uniform sleeves.

Ah, wait a minute…

I gazed at him with furrowed brows, a realization slowly dawning on me as I raised a finger up and pointed at him, absolutely dumbfounded. “A-Are you… Silver?”

“...Yes? You know of me?”

Slowly relaxing, I calmed down- but didn’t release the wall or let my bad foot touch the ground. I wondered if this man was named after his hair color. “Uh, k-kinda. Your dad, Lilia? He told me about you.”

He blinked at that. “I see. You are… the girl from the Overblot incident, are you not?”

Awkwardly clearing my throat, I gave a nod. “Y-Yup. That’s… me. Eleanora Quince. Does everyone know what happened now, or-?”

“It’s been shared.” Lovely. Also, this man doesn’t show very much emotion, does he? Hm. “What do you wish to do with my father?”

“Huh? O-Oh, uh, I was just gonna ask him a question. I’m trying to… find someone.”

He stared at me for a long moment, so much so it was a little unnerving. Then he stepped forward, walking passed me and nearing the mirror. I blinked when he extended a hand out to me, his aurora-colored eyes boring into my own. “Follow me. I’ll take you to him. He doesn’t have to go to the Light Music Club today, so he should be at the dorm.”

Wow. I was not expecting this. Okay. A part of me wants to turn tail now.

Though a little wary of entering a dorm without Grim, Ace, or Deuce for protection, I found myself nervously taking the hand offered to me and following Silver through the portal. As we walked through it I could feel something akin to electricity shoot through me, only putting my nerves more on end.

“Th-Thank you.” I stammered as we entered the new area.

On no. This really was a bad idea.

I should have spoken to my friends first after all, because this was clearly a mistake. I stood there in shock for a moment, just gazing at the ancient castle before us. We stood on a stone pathway, and halfway to the castle stood a giant arch. Attached to the end of the path was a wooden drawbridge, signifying entry to the building. The design overall was very gothic and victorian nature, and I loved that about it, but the thing that unnerved me were the giant walls of thorns on either side of the bridge.

They were twisted and tall, and threatened harm to any who dare go beyond the main path. It was _dangerous_. And flowing from the thorny abyss below was a green mist, full of magic that I just _knew_ was stronger than any I had ever encountered before. Wandering alone in this place would certainly be a death sentence.

Gods, why did I do this? As much as I wanted to trust this man because of how highly Lilia spoke of him, he was still a stranger. I knew next to nothing about him save for the little bits I was told of how he behaved as a child. The only comfort I had was that fact that I trusted Lilia, trusted his judgment, despite having only met him a few times.

So I was trying to bring myself to trust his son, foreign and unfamiliar he may be to me, in the hopes that should something happen he might protect me. I clung to his hand nervously, glancing around the area and swallowing the bile that tried to bubble up my throat as my head continued to ache. The throbbing only got worse as we approached the arch on the bridge, as my attention got caught to the statues perched atop it.

“A-Are those… gargoyles?”

Silver glanced up at me, then at the monster-like creatures guarding the place. “Yes. They protect the castle, or so I was told. The dorm leader is quite fond of them. Of course… those two specific ones may just be grotesques. He explained them to me before, but… I’m not yet sure of the differences between them.”

I blinked at that. The conversation was doing wonders to soothe my anxiety. “That’s… fair. I think grotesques are just typical statues; you know, for decoration? Gargoyles filter out rain and scare away intruders… I think.”

He nodded at that. I wasn’t even sure if he was really listening, the man simply continuing to walk and guide me to the entrance. Frick, we’re so close now. This was really nerve-wracking. Suddenly, without warning, the man spoke- startling me as he had been so quiet.

“Master Malleus might enjoy talking to you.” He said. “He’s very passionate about them.”

“About what?” I was so confused. “Oh! The gargoyles?”

That was when I realized what he said. Malleus. I heard that name before.

“Malleus Draconia… right? Why do you call him “master”?”

“Because I’m his servant. I protect and serve him.”

Now I’m even more lost. “Is he the son of a noble or something?”

Silver stopped walking, and I barely stopped myself in time to avoid crashing into his back. Tensing, I looked up at him, wondering if I said something wrong. His head slowly turned to look at me, eyes wide as emotion finally showed on his face. “You don’t know…? In the Valley of Thorns, Master Malleus is heir to the throne. He’s the next in line to be king.”

I almost choked. This person serves a freaking prince? There’s a _prince_ in this school?

“ I… did not know that. Wow.” I gave a stiff nod, biting my lower lip. “That’s… That’s cool. Alrighty then. Must be, uh, quite an honor to serve him, I guess.”

Silver’s expression went back into his usual blank state. “He is extremely powerful,” The man informed, though I already knew this part due to a certain cafeteria explanation, “and should not be taken lightly. You’d be wise to watch yourself around him. Should he appear in the lounge while you are visiting with Lord Lilia, I will guide you on how to properly greet him.”

Holy shit. What in the _hell_ am I getting into?

I just wanted to find Lilia and ask him if he knew anything about Mr. Horns and how to find him. I was not planning on entering a dorm led by a mother freaking prince. Ugh. I’m starting to think I’m cursed in more ways than one. “Wait. Lilia is a _lord?_ He did not mention that.”

“He doesn’t mention a lot of things.” Silver said as we continued to walk, the two us moving across the drawbridge and nearing the entrance. “He’s quite forgetful due to his old age. Lord Lilia is still deserving of respect, however, so please pay close mind to your words.”

“I will… do my best.”

Silver can never know that I ruffled his father’s hair. If this person learns that I acted so friendly and casual with someone as important as a lord, I may just lose my life. Holy frick.

I survived the decisive match and my curse, but now I may die for a whole different reason. Why is my life such a mess? I just wanted to apologize for a misunderstanding. I never planned or asked for this!

I cringed and walked further behind Silver, trying to hide from anyone that could see us as he opened the front door, clinging to his hand for all it was worth.

_I hate this, I hate this, I hate this! Why did I think this was a good idea?_

Because I’m a fool, that’s why. Ugh, this place is giving me such a headache.

_Are we in the lounge?_

Looks like it. Peering an eye open and ignoring the curious glances being sent our way,, I found myself admiring the classiness of the room. There were black leather sofas and chairs, several candelabras lit with green fire- why, they even had a fireplace in the room! And following up the grand stone staircases was a large dark emerald green throne with a pair of dragon wings protruding from the back.

“Whoa…” This place was amazing. Way better than my crappy dorm lounge, anyway. “It’s beautiful.”

Silver glanced at me from over his shoulder, the corner of his lips tilting up ever-so-slightly before falling back into a neutral expression. He tugged on my hand and I followed him over to one of the sofas, the man pulling away and facing me with his arms behind his back. “Sit here and wait. I’ll go fetch my father.”

Please don’t leave me alone. I don’t want to be in this place by myself!

“Uh, r-right. Okay.”

Oh, look, there he goes. Up the stairs and out of my life.

Movements tense, I forced myself to sit and folded my hands in my lap, fiddling with my fingers as I stared intently at the floor. I could feel so many eyes on me, whispers going about wondering as to why I was here and even mentioning how surprised they were that I survived the Overblot.

This really was one great big mistake. I should have just gone to Heartslabyul.

I wasn’t sure how long I was made to sit there, just hating the world as I anxiously waited for the silver-haired man to return. The green flames in front of me made me somewhat ill despite their beauty, and I had to pointedly look away from them. I began to hum a song in my head at some point, eyes closed, subtly swinging left-and-right to beat.

I wasn’t sure where it was from or how I knew it, but it came to mind and wouldn’t leave me. _I know you~ I walked with you once upon a dream…_ It was such a sweet song, though I had to wonder who originally sang it. I could almost imagine a young woman with golden hair dancing within a forest, several birds following her moments.

She had such a beautiful voice. Strong and powerful, and as enchanting as magic itself.

“Eleanora?”

I snapped out of my daze and blinked, head shooting up to see a wonderfully familiar face- not at all noticing how stunned he looked. The throbbing in my skull went away due to the distraction. Eyes growing wide as a smile lit up my face, I stood- a hand on the armrest for balance as my left foot remained slightly off the ground.

“Lilia!” I greeted excitedly, only to cringe. “Uh, Lord Lilia. Sorry. Sh-Should I bow? Is that a thing?”

I looked at Silver for help. He nodded, lowering his head with a hand on his chest. I quickly followed suit, doing as his example showed, and Lilia chuckled at the sight. He raised a hand up. “Now, now, no need for that. Friends don’t need to bow to other friends. You can treat me as you did before. We are all students at this college.”

“Uh…” I looked at Silver again, but he showed no response. I slowly tried to relax, looking back at Lilia again. “O-Okay. Oh, is that your dorm uniform? You look great!”

He was adorable. His jacket was _way_ too big for him, so it draped off his shoulders and dragged behind him when he walked. He also wore a white button-up with a plain black tie, and had a strange corset-looking belt wrapped around his waist with a couple thread spindles dangling from the side. Poking out from under that weird corset was a bunch of black ruffles, with more transparent purple ruffles underneath that.

Below the ruffles was a pair of black shorts with a neon green swerve going from the side to the front, and he wore some rather nice leggings with a thorn lace design, and a pair of black boots with green heels. A little black hat sat atop his head, accentuated with neon green trimming, the tips of the hat lapels crooked and almost resembling little wings.

All the thorn motifs in this place made me feel a little unwell, as it only reminded me of the curse that still existed within me, but overall I had to admit it was a cool design. Lilia grinned, raising a gloved hand up to his chin. “Why, thank you. I see you’re wearing the ceremonial uniform; but I must ask… why?”

I blinked, looking down at myself. “Ah, well… so, I actually put these on for pajamas, seeing as I don’t actually have any _real_ clothes aside from this, the school uniform, and I guess the gym uniform, but then I remembered I had a bunch of things to do. I’m not really sure if my school uniform has been washed though, so I just kinda left the dorm in this.”

“And… one of the things to do was visit Diasomnia?” Lilia looked very confused. “I mean, I am quite pleased to see you visit- even more so that you’ve survived. Your friend, Cater Diamond, has been very good at updating everyone on your status, but I must admit that this is quite a surprise.”

“Y-Yeah, sorry…” I raised a hand up and scratched the back of my head, ruffling my hair. “I was about to chicken out of coming here, but your son showed up and offered to help find you. So~ here I am!”

I held my hands up slightly dramatically, though the anxiety I currently had kept me from being _too_ out there at the moment.

“Yay…! Surprise.”

Lilia blinked. “I did mention I raised him. Also, you came to visit _me_ specifically?”

I opened my mouth to continue, but paused and then flinched when I accidentally leaned too much on my bad foot. I found myself sitting down, not by my own will but because Lilia was suddenly moving over, telling me to sit down as he plopped beside me on the sofa. Next thing I knew, Silver was in the chair across from us and a tea pot was floating in mid-air and pouring us tea, with little sandwiches and other such snacks laying about the table.

When did… When did they even get there!? Did he seriously just materialize them out of thin-air!? Dude, how strong is magic!? Or… Lilia’s magic specifically?

I blinked at the cup that floated into my hands, eyes wide.

Lilia giggled at my startled reaction, lips curled up into a smirk. He crossed one leg over the other, elbow propped up on the armrest as he turned to face. “So, tell me, little one; why the surprise visit? Shouldn’t you be resting instead of running about wearing yourself out? It’s a _miracle_ you even survived.”

He said that with a bit a lilt, as if hinting at something I wasn’t aware of. I looked at him in confusion. “Uh, I mean… I guess. I did rest a bit. I- oh, thank you,” I stammered to the floating tea cup before continuing to talk, ignoring Lilia’s amused grin, “uh, as I was saying; I did rest a little bit. I took a nap and bath, and got my medicine set up. Because I have _medicine_ now and it is amazing!”

I shook my head in a silly fashion as I said that, trying to emphasize how great it was, and took a small sip of the tea. I blinked.

“Oh, that’s really good.” My brows furrowed, trying to identify the taste. “Jasmine- _no._ Rose tea? This is rose tea, isn’t it?”

I looked down at the brew. It certainly appeared to be it. Silver was the one to comment this time, surprise dotting his sleepy features just slightly. He looked close to dozing off. “You know of it? Are you fond of tea?”

“Huh? Uh, yeah. I love floral tea.” I’m just glad it doesn’t taste like actual roses. I scrunched my nose up as I looked at the tea. “Roses themselves are pretty gross though. Zero out of ten, don’t recommend actually eating them.”

Lilia almost snorted his tea out of his nose at that. He coughed, hand to his mouth. “Th-There _are_ edible roses, but… yes. The ones you especially want to avoid are those that have been sprayed with pesticide or something of the like. Those would not make for a pleasant meal.”

Silver looked mildly confused by this turn of conversation. Shaking his head, he turned to me. “Ah, Eleanora Quince… right? Did you not say you had something to ask Lord Lilia?”

“Hm?” Lilia hummed at that. I jolted.

“Right! Almost forgot.” I whirled around, placing a hand on the sofa cushion and leaning towards the fae, expression lighting up. The man blinked, tilting his head at the sudden closeness and change of tone. “Lilia! Do you happen to know anyone with horns in this dorm?”

Silence.

After a moment’s pause Lilia lowered his cup of tea to his lap. He was staring at me with a new intensity, something unrecognizable flashing in those crimson eyes of his, while Silver was gazing at me in surprise. “Someone… with horns?”

I nodded fervently. I really needed to find him. “Yeah! He’s really tall, you can’t miss him. He has long black hair and super pretty chartreuse eyes. Wears a lot of dark make-up, too. He’s also kinda broody and likes walking around abandoned places. And this part’s just an assumption since I met him in the library forever ago, but I think he likes reading?”

I thought about it.

“He seemed really into that one book… oh!” I snapped out of it, trying to think of any other details. “He’s, uh, really convinced everyone is scared of him or something? I mean, he completely refuses to tell me his real name because of it. Dude lets me call him by a silly nickname instead. Ugh, what else? He’s, like, ridiculously pretty? But… that’s just my opinion, I guess.”

There was another thing. Come on, brain, think!

I straightened my back, realizing what it was. Carefully holding the cup of tea, I used my free hand and held an index finger up in the air, grinning. “Ah! He’s also a dragon fae! Do you... know... anyone like that?”

My voice faltered mid-question. Why… is it so quiet?

Doing a quick once-over the room, I noticed that everyone was staring in this direction now. More specifically, they were staring at _me._ Uh-oh. I shrunk a little my seat, holding the tea close to my chest. I really didn’t like this. It felt like I said something wrong.

“Um, I…” My voice went a little small near the end and I looked at Lilia, a little frightened by this sudden change of atmosphere. “I was suppose to talk to him the other day about… how the decisive match ended, y’know? But then… I-I couldn’t because… the Overblot happened.”

“I see…” Lilia hummed to himself as he sat upright, taking a long sip of his tea. I could feel my heart racing inside my chest, nerves on edge. He glanced up at me, eyelashes fluttering. “I do know of somebody like that. I suppose you need to apologize to him?”

“Y-Yeah…” I cleared my throat, looking down at the tea and then at the fae, and then at my tea again. It was seriously uncomfortable having everybody stare at me like this. You would think I committed some kind of taboo or something. “I-I promised to meet with him, you know? But then… all the craziness happened. He mentioned he was always forgotten a lot, so I-I think he might’ve thought _I_ forgot about him too. But I didn’t! I don’t… think he knows that though, so… he’s probably super mad right now.”

I really don’t want that to be the case.

“Mmm, I don’t think you need to worry.” Lilia commented casually, taking another sip of tea. He wasn’t looking at me. “But if you really do wish to speak with him, I can tell you his class number and year.”

I whirled my head around, alarmed. “Wait, really!?”

He glanced at me from the corner of his eyes, lips curled up in a mischievous smirk. “Why, yes. He’s a third-year, class D. Oh, what was his student number again?” Lilia tapped his chin, leaning his head back. “Ah, now I remember. Student number six. He’s quite difficult to find, but you may be able to locate him during his outdoor classes. That’s if he isn’t hiding in this building somewhere, of course.”

“Third-year, class D…” I echoed, trying to memorize the information. “Number six. Okay. Thank you!” I beamed at Lilia. “I seriously need to talk to him, so this is super helpful!”

“Any time.” He responded, smiling with half-lidded eyes. “Do give him my regards.”

“Of course!”

“Lord Lilia!” A sudden voice declared, loud and rather obnoxious. It was oddly familiar. Turning around, we all looked to see a tall, muscular student standing there, with yellow eyes and green hair. He was glaring at me. “What is this female human doing here? She’s not Diasomnia!”

“Oh, relax, Sebek.” Lilia waved him off. “She’s my guest. She came all this way to visit little ol’ me, isn’t that right?”

I blinked when the ancient fae took the chance to resituate himself, his tea cup floating in the air as he rolled onto his back and plopped his head onto my lap. “Uh, kinda? Yeah.”

This was a strange turn of events. I stiffened a little, unsure of how to react to a man using my lap as a pillow. I looked up at the newcomer, eyebrows furrowing as I tried to figure out why I recognized him.

The man called Sebek turned his nose up at me, and that was when I realized- “You!”

Everyone looked at me. Silver tilted his head, snapping awake from the sudden volume change. “Huh?”

I pointed at Sebek. “You’re that dude who ran up the staircase screaming “Young Master” when I went to the library forever ago!”

Lilia’s eyebrows raised. “Wait… was that the same day you met _that person_ you just told us about?”

I nodded, looking down at him. This position felt really weird, but I tried to ignore it. “Yeah! I wasn’t feeling good that day, so I went to the library to wait for my friends’ classes to end, and that’s when I got bored and started looking at books! I went upstairs, and that’s how I met Mr. Horns! He was super nice and helped me get a book down since I couldn’t reach it. I also ran into him later that day, which was when I made the promise to tell him about the decisive match.”

“You…” The ancient fae was stunned. “You just kept encountering him?”

“Y-You dare…” Sebek began to shake, hands curled into fists at his side, his lips curling back and revealing some very thick fangs. Leaning his head back as he glared down at me, his voice loud and booming, the man began to shout, “YOU DARE TO INSULT THE GREATEST MAGICIAN OF ALL TIME WITH SUCH A PATHETIC NICKNAME? MASTER MAL- _Mmmf!”_

I’ve never seen anyone move as fast as Silver did in that moment.

I barely even registered what had happened by the time it occurred. One moment the man was sitting lazily in his chair, head lolling forward as he was close to dozing off, and then he had picked up a sandwich and lunged- shoving it in the green-haired student’s mouth.

“You’re too loud.” Silver stated bluntly, looking almost annoyed at the man who was currently choking. “Don’t say his name- not around her.”

“Wafff!? MAFFER MAHWEUS!” Sebek was starting to turn blue, grabbing at Silver’s arms and trying to get him to let go. “FILVER!”

With one hand keeping the food shoved down his throat, and the other arm pressed across the front of his chest, Silver began to push Sebek away. The green-haired giant was pushing against him the entire time, but the loss of momentum and the element of surprise gave Silver the advantage.

Lilia was covering his mouth with both hands, snickering away with tears in his eyes as remained curled up in my lap. It felt really weird and it was honestly a little uncomfortable, but this world was so strange that I decided that compared to everything else it didn’t really matter. I trusted Lilia, anyway. Faes were known to be mischievous in mythology, so I was convinced he was just being a bit of a goofball.

Watching the scene between Silver and Sebek take place, I found myself wondering once again if coming here really was that good of an idea. “Y-You know what? I should… probably go…”

“Aw, already?” Lilia pouted at me, but it was hard for him to keep up the face when he was still laughing. “Okay, but be sure to visit again! And do be careful! Just look at your cute little face- it’s all covered in bandages!”

“It’s fine.” I waved him off with a lazy grin, watching as he sat up. “My foot is the real annoying thing.”

Lilia frowned, the laughter finally dying away. “Yes, I noticed it earlier. Would you like me to heal it?”

“What?” That startled me. “You can do that?”

He smirked, shifting to sit with legs crossed over each other. “Yes. It isn’t that difficult for someone in Diasomnia to use healing magic, especially if you’re someone as old as I am. We faes tend to pick up on magic more easily than humans. Here, give me your leg.”

“Uh… n-no, that’s okay.” I awkwardly said, hurriedly downing what was left of the tea and setting the cup down on the table. I stood, almost losing balance for a moment. “I-I don’t want to bother you. It’ll heal on its own in a week or two, so-”

“Eleanora.”

I flinched, sitting back down at the stern tone of voice he used. Reluctantly turning to face him, I lifted my left leg up and set my foot on the couch as gently as I could. I watched with nervous eyes as his fingers began to glow green, the crimson of his eyes seeming to brighten as he cast the magic. He ran his fingers along my ankle and foot, and I resisted the urge to shudder at the weird tingly sensation the magic brought.

It was similar to the way the nurse had healed my ribs, but not quite. This was older.

Ancient.

The warmth that spread along my foot was accompanied by a coolness, and there was the weirdest feeling inside my foot that I couldn’t quite explain. Then… the glow died from his fingertips and he pulled away, the man looking quite pleased with himself. “There we go. Try moving your foot now.”

I did as told, though a bit hesitant as I fully expected pain. When there was nothing, I stood and tested putting my weight on my left foot, but… nothing happened. My eyes went wide. “Whoa. Dude! That’s so cool!” I balanced on it, one leg in the air. “Haha~ it works! Lilia, you’re amazing!”

The fae was a little surprised when I whirled around and lunged, wrapping my arms around his shoulders in a hug.

“Thank you!”

He quickly maneuvered his arms around my waist, reciprocating the embrace with an amused smile. “Just don’t go getting yourself so badly injured again, alright? I’m not going to spoil you.”

“I make no promises, but I will try not to.” I informed, letting him go with a grin. “But seriously, I do need to go. Ace and Deuce are gonna rage at me hard if I don’t find them soon, and I don’t even know how Grim is gonna react.”

Lilia chuckled at that. “Very well. Enjoy the rest of your day, little one.”

“You too!” I beamed, making my way to the exit and waving at him. “Bye~!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Malleus almost made an appearance in this, lol. But it was like- NO! This is a LILIA chapter, and I already have an idea for how I want the Mr. Horns confrontation to go. AGHHHH. So I had to go back and fix it. Hopefully Silver and Sebek are both in character. Their relationship reminds me a lot of Kyo and Yuki from Fruits Basket, haha. I think it might have shown a little during that one encounter. 
> 
> Also Team Divus for the win! Our man is way more responsible and caring than Crowley is, like jeez bird dad get your act together. Ghost dads are way better than you at this point.
> 
> My Kingdom Hearts brain when I saw Malleus' class number was six: (insert Beyonce Meme here) ZEXION!?
> 
> (Ahem) That aside, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! :D Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day/night! 
> 
> Diasomnia really does like their thorn and rose motifs, don't they...? Fufufu.


	28. A Family Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Malleus, strewn atop a pile of gold: "I am the name guardian, guardian of the name!" 
> 
> Sebek, wearing a Malleus fanclub shirt, holding his hands out and gesturing to him dramatically: "The world cowers before him!" 
> 
> Malleus, breathing fire: "RAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"

The visit with Diasomnia went better than I had thought it would go. I still had no idea what was going on with Sebek or Silver, or why the latter one thought he needed to shove food down the green-haired giant’s throat, but I’m not going to question it. I’m just happy I was able to get the information I needed.

Walking out of the mirror, I tapped my foot against the floor- still surprised by the lack of pain. I had just been starting to think that all magic was awful and aggressive until Nurse Salvador and Lilia healed me.

_Mr. Horns…_

He was powerful with magic, wasn’t he? That was one of the many reasons he thought people were scared of him. It makes me wonder what kinds of spells he can cast, and what all it is that he’s capable of. Ugh, I want to talk to him even more now. Damn it. No- I need to focus. I have to get to Heartslabyul. Ace and Deuce are gonna freak out so bad if they head to the infirmary first before I can talk to them. I can’t let that happen.

They’re probably mad at me enough as is…

I don’t want to further incur their wrath. Although, thinking on it, I doubt Deuce is that angry. He’s probably more worried. Ace is the one I needed to be careful with; he’s just as bad as me when it comes to our emotions rushing out. I made a disturbed face, realizing that the two of us were more alike than it seemed. How lovely. No wonder we argued and bantered a lot.

It also sort of explained why we got along, too, which was weird. Normally I couldn’t handle being around people who reminded me of myself. I guess Ace and I were just _barely_ different enough for me to actually enjoy his company. I still can’t believe it took this long for me to find out he was a libra.

I…

I really hope he doesn’t hate me.

I vaguely recall him shouting at me before I blacked out before, talking about how much he despised me and my way of keeping everything bottled inside, sick of me pretending I was okay. It was just a defense mechanism- a way to survive. I just wanted to get by in this world, but so many forces were fighting against me. I had no clue what to do.

I was just scared.

I took a shaky breath, stopping in front of the Heartslabyul mirror and staring at the rippling glass. Is this really the right choice? The proper course of action? It feels like there should be more that I have to do, that I need to do, but I’m honestly not sure. Ace, Deuce… Grim. Gods, that cat monster was going to rage at me so hard. I almost cost him his position as student.

Maybe I can find Trey or Cater and ask them to come with me to check on the boys…

No. No, I needed to do this myself. I have to.

But god _damn_ was it hard.

I started pacing around the Hall of Mirrors, fingers running through my hair, anxiety crawling through my veins and giving me goosebumps. I was starting to panic. I needed to calm down. Just- focus. Think. What are the possible ways the conversations could turn out? There’s the possibility that they’re both just relieved and happy, but there’s the more realistic one of them being highly upset and even angry with me.

I began to talk to myself in my head, practicing the many versions of the conversation that could occur, bracing myself for the inevitable. Ugh, why didn’t I ask Lilia to come with me? He might have agreed to it. I need back up! Emotional support! I can’t do this on my own.

I groaned loudly, sliding my hands down my face and squishing my cheeks.

“I hate trying to adult…”

Why did all of this have to happen? My life was _never_ this chaotic before. Not even my time in high school had so much drama. I’ve never even had my life threatened until I came here. Now, after having nearly died and being stuck in a coma for several days, I’m currently trying to figure out how to approach my friends to let them know I had woken up and was alive.

Freaking hell.

Exhaling, I shook my hands to rid myself of the jitters and stepped forward, walking into the mirror.

…

Lilia was honestly shocked. Seeing her moving around and alive was one thing, but to think she actually knew Malleus? The way the young prince was behaving earlier and how he had taken off like that the other day after the comment the ancient fae had made was making a lot more sense, especially since the two _knew_ each other. Lilia was starting to gain an inkling as to how she survived.

And to think that after all these years of isolation he was finally starting to make a friend? Oh, how this old man could just cry tears of joy right now. Lilia’s paternal instinct must have taken over, because he found himself sniffling and dabbing at his eyes with a handkerchief. “He might actually overcome his ill fate…!”

Bless that human girl.

Lilia doesn’t have any idea how Malleus came to be in possession of her name, but he must have used it to save her. The thorns that had been growing inside of her chest seemed to have retreated- or, rather, have been burned away. He could still see the seeds within her, ready to start blooming and spreading once given the chance, but at the moment her demise had been prolonged.

Such a good boy, his little Malleus is! Just look at how well he’s been raised. Lilia couldn’t be more proud.

Ah, speaking of the dragon fae- that must be him coming down the stairs now. Lilia turned in his seat, watching as the man walked down the grand stairway. He looked elegant as ever, truly the visage of royalty. Lilia did find it strange that the two kept meeting- especially on the same day. Why, she even met Malleus directly after passing by Sebek, who had been looking for him.

It was too much of a coincidence. Wasn’t it?

Lilia’s brows furrowed for a moment, recalling the conversation he had with the girl about half an hour ago. There was something about her… he couldn’t quite describe. Her smile, her warm brown eyes, and even the bubbly nature she possessed when the stress wasn’t eating away at her.

It all felt so… familiar, somehow. Like she reminded him of someone from a long, long, long time ago.

Ah, but he can’t even remember that far back. His memories have faded with his old age. Lilia must have met a human like her at some point, way before he ever adopted Silver. Who was it, though? And why…

Lilia set his tea cup down on its saucer, holding it steady in his lap as he stared into nothing.

Why did he have such a bad feeling? Trying to recall that forgotten person… left his stomach unsettled. It must have been eons ago. Maybe even back to when _she_ had been ruling over the Valley of Thorns. Yet, the only human he could recall being allowed in the castle- back in that time period- was her lover.

But that man… died. He died so young.

Great Seven, what was his name again?

“Lilia?” The ancient fae snapped out of his thoughts, looking up at the man towering over him. The shorter man blinked. “Is something the matter?”

“O-Oh, no. Please, forgive me. I got lost in a daydream.”

Malleus hummed, tossing his cape before him and carefully sitting down in a chair across from the crimson-eyed fae. He waved his hand and a tea pot came fluttering over in his direction, carefully pouring tea in a dainty little tea cup. Careful not to break it, he grabbed the handle and lifted the glass to his lips, blowing on the hot liquid to cool it. “I see. Might I inquire as to what you were daydreaming about?”

Lilia cracked a small smile at that, sitting up and lifting his tea cup up to his lips. “Just some old memories.”

He took a small sip, eyes closing shut as he tried to think back once more. Giving up after a few more seconds, he held his cup out and had the tea pot refill it. Lilia glanced at Malleus with half-lidded eyes, curiosity and a strange feeling of suspicion welling up inside of him.

“Tell, me…” Lilia began carefully. “Have you noticed it yet?”

“Hm?”

“The human girl.” He clarified. “Eleanora Quince. She has such a charisma to her, don’t you agree?”

Malleus said nothing, simply staring at the fae with intense chartreuse eyes, confusion evident on his face. Lilia continued, speaking his thoughts aloud- both to help himself remember and to get a react of some kind of the prince, wanting to know more about his relationship with the human girl.

“Despite being in this world for only a short time, she’s already made so many friends and drawn so many people to her. She even came here to speak to you, Malleus.” Ah, there it was. Surprise flitted across his porcelain face, and Lilia resisted the urge to smirk. He brought his cup to his lips again, one leg crossing over his knee. “Such a brave little human; I thought Sebek was about to attack her when she referred to you with that silly nickname. Mr. Horns, was it? Why, the entire dorm was surprised. Silver had to take it upon himself to stop Sebek from telling her who you were.”

“...”

“And she was _so_ worried, you know? I think she fears that you might hate her now- what with her having apparently broken a _promise_ between you. She was ever so desperate to apologize.”

Lilia leaned back into his seat, pleased to see that this knowledge was having _some_ sort of effect on the young prince. He really did care about the girl, didn’t he? Interesting. To think a friendship would finally form- and without his knowledge, too. Eleanora Quince really is quite impressive. Tilting his head back, Lilia rolled onto his side, head against the armrest of the sofa.

“Poor thing was shaking like a leaf! So scared and concerned that “Mr. Horns” might not want to talk to her anymore! Of course, that shivering could have just been because she was cold… that ceremonial uniform she was wearing was torn all over the place. Poor thing might catch ill soon enough. Ramshackle Dorm isn’t exactly stable… or clean. For someone with a medical condition such as herself, it’s quite dangerous.”

Lilia hummed to himself, eyes closed as he thought, tapping his index finger against his chin.

“Maybe I should pick her up something to wear…? She mentioned she didn’t have any pajamas, or anything else to wear except the school uniforms. She’s such a sweet girl, and humans are quite fragile. What do you think, Malleus? It’s been such a long time since I went shopping for a human!”

He turned his head, grinning, only to blink when he saw that the prince wasn’t responding.

“Malleus? What’s wrong?” The dragon fae said nothing, tea cup discarded on the dining table. Lilia frowned. He sat back up, leaning over and looking at the man worriedly. “Did I upset you, perhaps? That wasn’t my intention.”

“I’m not upset.” Malleus finally spoke, though the look on his face said the complete opposite. Lilia raised an eyebrow, not at all impressed with the childish refute. He was literally pouting at him, glaring at the floor. “I’m not a kid anymore, Lilia. Stop treating me as such.”

That’s exactly what one would say, though.

The ancient fae sighed, sitting up and pressing a finger to his temple. “No, I suppose not… but one is never too old to have someone worry over them. That’s a lesson you’d do well to learn quickly. Your new friend seems like the type to worry over everyone she meets. She even tried to refuse my offer to use healing magic on her foot because she thought it would bother me. I won in the end, of course, and convinced her to let me heal it, but…”

He chuckled, bringing a hand up to his chin.

“Well, I suppose she just doesn’t know how to handle others caring about her, or even helping her. She’s changed a lot compared to when we first met, but I guess that’s only another thing that shows she’s human. They mature a lot faster than fae do due to their short lifespan. But I also believe she just fears becoming too dependent on people. What do you think, Malleus?”

The dragon fae said nothing, merely turning his head away and staring into the distance, chartreuse eyes narrowing intently in thought. “She’s… strange. Reckless. Airheaded. Foolish.” His chin lowered and he stared at his hand for a moment, turning it over to gaze at his palm. “She has no sense of self-preservation, yet desires to live all the same.”

Malleus finally turned to look at Lilia, expression near impossible to read.

“Eleanora Quince… is an audacious little human, with next to no awareness of danger. What others fear, she does not. And that, Lilia, is what will be her downfall.”

Lilia’s eyes went wide. He watched the smirk pull across the dragon fae’s charcoal colored lips, and for a moment it almost felt like he was staring at someone else. A woman that was older, stronger, more ancient. Someone everyone feared, yet respected. But that image was quickly gone, and the man was left to watch as Malleus stood- staff swinging beside him as he walked past the dining table.

When Malleus spoke again, his voice was firm. “That does not mean I’ll let her die, however. In fact, I forbid it.”

His heels clacked against the floor and then came to a halt, and Malleus looked at Lilia from over his shoulder, arrogance and amusement radiating off of his tall form- a sight that would leave many to shudder in fright. He grinned, fangs poking out from between his lips.

“That little human has sealed her fate to me, and no matter how many dreams she chases; I _will_ save her. I have decided it. Her name is mine, and it will always remain so.”

No one is going to take it from him.

…

I seriously wish I wasn’t so anxious.

Aghhhh, it’s fine! It’s going to be fine. I’m positive. No, wait, I don’t actually know that, though. Was it even smart of me to walk in here alone? It was a lot easier than entering Diasomnia, as I had been to this place several times before, but it wasn’t as though I had anyone with me today. Silver was back in his dorm, and my friends- the one who did know I had woken up- weren’t with me either.

Ugh, what a mess. I’m an anxious ball of human flesh and I hate it.

The deeper I walked into Heartslabyul territory, the more I regretted not even bringing the stuffed bear for emotional support. At least then I would have something to cling onto, rather than constantly fiddling with my fingers or hugging myself. Where am I even supposed to start looking for the boys?

Hold on. Riddle mentioned he had them helping clean up the garden, right? That might be the best place to start. It was a good thing I mostly remembered how to get through the maze. All I had to do now was actually find my friends.

It’s not like it’s actually going to be as hard as I’m imagining it to be. I’m just paranoid.

But… please… just this once-

_Let everything be okay._

We’ve suffered enough already.

My walk slowed as I descended into the hedge maze, able to see several pieces of debris in the distance. As I wandered deeper into the garden, I eventually came across a large human-shaped hole in one of the walls of foliage. Peering through, I found myself recalling with a cold shudder the memory of what occurred during the battle- and how I was sent sailing through air.

It really did happen, didn’t it? My getting hit by a tree…

Stepping through the mess, carefully grasping onto the hedge sides for balance, I looked around with disturbed eyes, the memories slowly returning to me as I caught sight of the blood and… _eugh,_ vomit. I shivered, bringing my hands up and hugging myself, rubbing my arms. I remembered pain- unbridled, unadulterated, excruciating pain- and a crazy rush of adrenaline.

Looking back on it, it was hard to believe that was actually me who did all that. But I knew in my heart it was real.

I-I just…

My face paled upon seeing all the dried up crimson, the liquid long-since having stained the grass. Is all that blood mine? I know bodies are over seventy percent water, but to think I really had that much or had even lost that much blood, was…

It was…

I stumbled back, falling to a knee with a hand on my head as a new wave of dizziness washed over me. I felt faint and sick, and I could tast the vomit on my tongue as it bubbled up the back of my throat. I found myself baffled and disturbed, beyond concerned by all of this.

Just how in the hell was I alive? Nothing made any sense. Nurse Salvador’s magic wasn’t that strong. It could barely even heal my ribs. I should be dead.

I… I remember dying. I _swear_ that I remember dying.

I remember it so _vividly_ and it’s _terrifying._

The pain, the blood, the ink, the petals, the monster. The inhumane way Riddle had transformed. My friends staring at me in complete horror as I forced my body to crawl against the destroyed ground. I even remembered the sensation of pain exploding all across my chest after getting hit by that tree, and the way my back had thudded against the hedges like some kind of limp ragdoll, my body being tossed through the foliage at such insane speed it should have killed me.

I... I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget that. What happened was going to haunt me.

It was going to haunt me for the rest of my life.

I inhaled sharply, eyes squeezed shut, head shaking violently as I tried to force the memory and the sensation of past pain away. Everything was fine. There was nothing to fret over. It was fine.

I _should be_ fine.

Right?

I was healed now. I was alive. That should be all that matters. What happened is in the past, and I should be able to forget it.

Swallowing thickly, I forced myself to stand- legs shaking below me as I struggled to even my breathing. Though shaken, and more than a little bit traumatized by all that has happened since my arriving to this world, I started to walk again. I stumbled a little, but eventually managed to regain my balance to walk properly.

Before long I found some students, and I hesitated for a few seconds before forcing myself to approach them- flashing the teens the brightest smile I could muster as I clapped my hands together. “Hey~! Do you guys happen to know where Ace and Deuce are? They’re both fairly tall, with orange and blue hair? They should have a cat monster with them…”

This felt weird. Was it safe for me to talk to these people? I know a lot of people don’t like me, some of them even probably wanted to hurt me. And without my friends for protection, I wouldn’t be able to defend myself. I awkwardly folded my arms over my chest, hugging myself as I stood as straight as I could to appear confident. Maybe I could scare them off with a murder glare?

...Wait, why are they just staring at me?

The group of boys looked confused, stunned even, with sheer befuddlement written across their expressions. Not really giving me a proper answer, one of them- a brunet with grey eyes, who had a spade painted on his face- raised a hand up and pointed to the left of the maze, his mouth slightly agape.

I blinked, pointing in the direction he was gesturing to. “That way?”

“Y-Yeah…” Whoa, he talked. I nodded awkwardly, taking a step back.

“Right. Well, uh, thank you! And, um, have a nice day! Bye~!”

I waved at them as I left, walking in the direction I was sent. More and more people came into view as I wandered around, all of them working together to repot trees and bushes, and even re-painting the roses. Their dedication to their dorm was rather admirable. Back in my world, you couldn’t get me to do _squat_ for my school save for a few fundraisers here and there.

I honestly didn’t understand why people found so much pride with their schools. Granted, the one I went to was one of the worst, but… it was just a school. The teachers weren’t too great and a lot of the students were even worse, so I had no motivation to share school spirit. I just wanted to do my homework, go home, play video games, and sleep.

But… I guess a school of magic is vastly different from a normal school. The teachers here at least seemed to care for their students- with the exception of the headmaster. I still can’t fathom the fact that _Divus_ was the one who told the doctors about my medical condition. Like, damn, man. You both scare me and fluster me, and yet you’re a genuinely good person.

It almost made me doubt this being reality.

If not having met so many nice people already, and having been put through so much, I might have believed it. Sadly, I knew this was reality… and I had several issues I needed to sort out as a result. Man, I’m still happy I have medicine now.

I coughed a little as I approached the strong fumes of paint. Due to being outside they weren’t as strong, but because there was so much of it they were actually starting to mess with my lungs a bit. I held a hand over my mouth, glancing around, watching as some students wrestled with a couple of animals to get them to behave.

Flamingos of several different colors were squawking loudly and flapping their wings, while some other students were carrying very prettily colored hedgehogs in their arms.

_Is… Is that one blue?_

So. Freaking. Cute. Oh my gods. I want to pet it. My heart. It can’t. Agh!

_I love it. Maybe if I ask nicely Riddle will let me cuddle one later?_

Further in the maze, some students were flattening the parts of the ground that had been shredded, using what I could only assume to be some sort of nature magic to help regrow any dead or injured grass. I didn’t notice before, but during his Overblot the magic Riddle had been using must have stretched over quite the distance. No wonder it took such a toll on him.

Amazed by all their hard work and the magic that was being casted, I found myself stopping occasionally to observe. My opinion on magic _was_ starting to get better, slowly as that progress was, but I still wasn’t too fond of it. Instead of completely dreading it, however, I found myself intrigued instead. Fascinated. I was starting to wonder what all kinds of magic there was in this world. If there were any that were more supportive or kind, rather than blatant destruction.

The more I thought about it, the more I wondered about the magic that brought me to this world. I still didn’t understand it. Why was I even cursed in the first place? Who did it? Was it for a good purpose, or something malevolent?

I let out a small sigh and continued walking. It was seriously starting to feel like I would never find out. Seriously…

Ace, Deuce, Grim… where are you?

I was starting to feel like I should just give in to defeat. I’ve been through half of this hedge maze already and I still haven’t found them. Did I pass by them accidentally? Were they in the dorm itself? What… should I do?

“-are you humming?” My breath caught in my throat, eyes immediately growing misty upon hearing the familiar voice speak, and I almost tripped over my feet, coming to an abrupt halt and shooting my head up in the direction I heard the boy talking. “You’re going to get distracted, you know.”

“Oh, shut up. I can do what I want.”

I wasted no time in rushing over and hiding behind the nearest hedge, peering past it and looking ahead to see the two boys I had been looking for. Grim was nowhere in sight, probably with Cater or Trey, but Ace and Deuce were there. The ginger was standing on a ladder, placed to the right backside of the tree and glaring at his classmate as they got to work painting. Deuce, while also painting, wasn’t on a ladder- instead standing at the left side of the tree, his back turned to me, a bucket in one hand and large sloppy wet paint brush in his other.

After a moment’s pause Ace spoke up again, seemingly irritable as he dumped a big glob of red on the white roses. “It’s just… something I heard El singing before. Back when Cater made us paint together. It’s stupid, but… it’s also really catchy and it won’t get out of my head.”

Deuce snorted a little, but went quiet shortly afterwards. “...Do… Do you think she’ll wake up? She’s been asleep for so long now, a-and… there was… all that blood…”

No response. What usually would have elicited an irritable snap of words only resulted in silence. Ace lowered his head, movements slowing down as his jaw tightened. Deuce looked at him in alarm, before turning his head and blinking fiercely, his shoulders slumping.

“I…” Deuce’s voice cracked a little, the blue-haired teen hesitating. “I don’t… I mean, I _want_ her to, but… it’s starting to feel like…”

No. No, no, no.

I moved out of sight, back against the hedge as I pressed my knuckles to my mouth, lips curling back as my eyes began to sting. It was getting hard to breathe. Everything was blurring and my lungs were aching, and- gods, what the hell?

I-I hadn’t planned for this. I wasn’t expecting to overhear them talk about me in such a manner. How the frick am I supposed to approach them now?

“...It’s starting to feel like she’ll never wake up…”

I can’t do it. I can’t. It hurts. It hurts so much and I can’t breathe.

A sob got stuck in my throat and I choked, eyes squeezing tightly shut as the tears began to fall. I slid down to the ground, knees brought up to my chest as I tried to silence my cries, sobbing to myself as guilt washed over me like a tidal wave. I had been planning to try and approach them with a smile, to let them know everything was okay and that there was nothing to worry about, but now I can’t even stand. I just hurt.

I really scared them, didn’t I? I worried them so much. I’m such an awful person. The worst of friends. I curled my arms over my head, fingers tangling into my hair, face buried in my elbows.

_I’m sorry… I’m sorry!_

I didn’t want to die. I didn’t want to be cursed. I wouldn’t even hate being in this world so much if it wasn’t for the constant lingering threat of death looming over my shoulder. I didn’t want to worry you guys or scare you. I just wanted to help.

“...El?”

I’m sorry. I…

A shadow suddenly fell over me and I hiccuped, looking up to see a familiar ginger falling to his knees in front of me, a hand outstretched with his red eyes wide as can be. “E-El, that’s… you, right? You’re…” I flinched, but didn’t lean away he reached out and touched my cheek. He let out a shaky breath. “You’re real.”

“I-I’m sorry.” I choked out, bringing my hands up and trying to wipe off my face, pressing my palms to my burning eyes as I sniffled and sobbed. “I-I didn’t- I just- I’m sorry!”

“Eleanora…” Deuce stepped forward, kneeling down beside Ace so they were on either side of me. His lips curled back and his eyes watered, and then his arms were around my shoulders, pulling me to him and squeezing tight, his face buried in my hair. “You’re alive! Y-You’re actually…!”

“What the hell…” Ace ran his fingers through his hair, brushing his bangs back and just staring, watching the scene take place in shock. “How? When? Wh-What did-!? Holy shit, you fucking asshole; come here!”

I let out a small yelp when he lunged, the boy nearly choking me as one of his arms got tangled in with Deuce’s, his other arm wrapped around my waist. Suddenly the pained sobs led way to laughter, as I found myself relieved and overwhelmed with happiness. I was so nervous they were going to be mad- that they might still be mad later- but right now it was okay.

Right now I was sandwiched between my two best friends in the weirdest, grossest, snottiest hug in the history of mankind, and that was okay.

“I-I really am sorry…!”

“Just shut up!” Ace growled, burying his face in between my neck and one of Deuce’s arms, refusing to actually show his tears. “Just shut up, okay!? That doesn’t even matter anymore! You’re awake a-and alive, and…”

He let out a sound of frustration and anger and relief, and I tried to unravel my arms out from the trap that was Deuce so I could hug both of the boys. Deuce shook his head, holding tighter. “You’re really here…”

“Y-yeah.” I leaned into his chest, eyes squeezing tightly shut as I reveled in their warmth. “I-I missed you guys.”

I hiccupped, swallowing down the lump that was stuck painfully in my throat. My fingers pulled at their uniform jackets, instinctively trying to hug them closer.

“I-I missed… I missed you both so much! I was so scared!”

We sat there for a while, all holding onto each other and just crying, basking in each other’s presence knowing we had all survived. Knowing that we were together again. That we were safe. _Home._ Because… while the time we spent together may have been short, in actuality, they and the ghosts _were_ my new home. In this world, they were the closest thing I had to a family, and I found it- all on my own. Through a series of mishaps and adventures, we grew and bonded together, becoming closer than most normal friends were.

And while it was little, and maybe a bit broken, it was still good.

As long as we were together, we would be okay.

“I’m so glad...” I murmured, voice raspy and soft, words faltering midway through as I struggled to speak. I had the worst headache from all that crying, but I felt so much more relaxed. Ace and Deuce seemed to have calmed down as well, but they haven’t pulled away yet either. “I’m really sorry.”

Ace huffed, slowly untangling himself from the human mess pile, the ginger turning his head away and bringing a hand up to his face. “Y-Yeah, well, you better be. Jerk. You’re worse than I am. But…” His shoulders slumped, hand falling as he glanced back at us. “...thanks, y’know? For pulling through. And… for everything else.”

My brows furrowed, confusion evident on my features. “What are you…?”

“Nothing! Forget about it.” He cleared his throat, standing up and brushing his hands off on his pants. “Ugh, I can’t believe you made me get all mushy again! You know I hate that crap.”

Deuce shook his head at the ginger, a weak chuckle falling past his lips. “You never change, Ace.”

“Oh, be quiet! I’ll hit you.”

“Is that so?” Deuce grinned, pulling away and starting to stand, cracking his knuckles. His other personality was shining through again. “You really wanna go, punk? I’ll kick your ass!”

Welp. Here we go.

A smile tugged at my lips and I laughed, watching them in great amusement as I tried to wipe the tears and snot off my face. “You guys are _such_ goofs, my goodness. J-Jeez. Riddle’s gonna… Riddle’s gonna scold you both if you get in a fight, you know? Do you really want to lose your heads again? I-I don’t know about you, but...”

I cracked a grin.

“I don’t think we can handle another decisive match.”

Ace and Deuce hesitated. They looked at each other, then back at me- who was still grinning up at them and sitting on the ground. They turned away from each other, stubbornly crossing their arms and pouting. Deuce was the first to speak. “W-Well, it’s not like he can cut our heads off right now. He still hasn’t fully recovered from the blot. But it’s not like I was _actually_ going to fight Ace!”

“Y-Yeah! It was just… a threat.” Ace said, trying to defend himself. “I wasn’t actually gonna follow through with it.”

I raised my eyebrows at them, unconvinced. “Uh-huh. Sure. We’ll go with that.”

Letting out a small sneeze and sniffling, I blinked a couple of times and stood.

“O-Okay, well, uh… I… gotta go find Grim- to let him know I’m okay. Do you guys know where he’s at?”

The boys blinked. Ace and Deuce shared a look.

Speaking up, the ginger said, “He should be with the Cater clones. Come on, we’ll take you to him.”

Grabbing my wrist, I was left to follow Ace while Deuce walked beside me, guiding me through the next section of the maze. It didn’t take very long to find the many strawberry blonds, several versions of Cater painting roses and repotting soil, and even telling a couple other students what to do. He was surprisingly hard working, and it was even more shocking to see the people follow his orders without a complaint.

I guess he really wanted the garden back to its former glory.

Ah, wait! Is that-? Yes!

Sitting atop one of their shoulders was a cat monster, who was struggling to cast paint spells with his magic. “Almost… got it… _ha!_ How’s that?”

“Good, good!” The clone praised. “But can you make it red instead of pink? Thank you~!”

“Grim!”

The cat monster paused. He blinked, ears twitching, and then turned to look at me in confusion. His eyes widened in alarm. “H… Human? Henchman, is that you?”

I scrunched my nose up, Ace releasing my wrist and letting me walk over, and I stopped a few feet away with my arms held out. “I’m not your henchman, but yeah. It’s me.”

“Y… You…” His lips curled back, revealing his shark-like teeth, and then Grim lunged- nearly sending the clone toppling over. I yelped, barely catching him in time, and Deuce quickly placed a hand on my back to steady me. “You’re alive~! You finally woke up! I-I thought you were dead!” 

“Me, too.” I responded honestly, a weak smile on my face as I held him close, running my fingers through his fur. I held him up, burying my face in his fluff. “I… I really didn’t think I’d survive.”

Grim pulled away, glaring up at me with teary blue eyes. “How dare you do something like that! That’s not nice! Next time, I’ll pretend to be the one dead and show you how it feels!”

I choked at that. “Please don’t.”

He huffed at me, tail swishing irritably, but leaned back into my chest and rested his chin on my shoulder. “Such a jerk… some henchman you are…”

“I’m _not_ your henchman.”

“Ellie~!” Oh gods. I looked around in horror as the Cater clones began to form a circle around us, all of them cheering and winking and reaching out to hug me. “Welcome back! It’s been so long!”

“We’ve missed you!”

“I’m so happy you’re okay! You’re lookin’ super cute now that you’re not bedridden!”

“Has the bear been treatin’ you right?”

Ace and Deuce looked so confused, while Grim was hissing at the clones. I was trapped, unable to push any of them away due to my hold on the cat monster, and could only suffer as they wrapped their arms around me and nuzzled my face.

“Bear…?” Deuce inquired, befuddled. “What bear?”

“The real me got her a teddy bear!” One of the clones said, beaming brightly. “It was super cute. You should’ve seen it. Ah, hold on- I might have a picture up on Magicam. Wait, do any of us have the phone? I don’t think I do. Where’s the real me?”

“I think we were with Riddle…”

“No, no, the real me was with Trey earlier!”

“I’m over here, you guys!” Everyone turned to see the real Cater wander over, waving at us and laughing. “Sorry, sorry. The more clones, the more chaos. It’s hard to keep track and control everyone. Ellie~ hi! It’s good to see you moving around outside the infirmary.”

The clones backed away and I blinked when the real Cater reached a hand out, ruffling my hair with an affectionate wink. He looked up at the boys beside me.

“I guess you finally reunited with these two, huh? That’s great! I was starting to worry about how that was gonna go, but…” Cater scratched his cheek, grinning, seemingly relieved. “It seems you all are back together in your cute little trio! Or quartet, actually, counting Grim; so there’s nothing for me to worry about! Oh! Do you wanna come in for some tea? I’m sure you must be _dying_ to have some real food.”

“I mean…” I tilted my head. “I had tea at Diasomnia earlier, but sure. I didn’t really get to eat any of the snacks Lilia laid out, so…”

Cater, his clones, and my friends all stared. “D-Diasomnia?” The strawberry blond stuttered. “You went to _Diasomnia_ and had tea?”

“Yup! It was great. A guy named Silver shoved a sandwich down Sebek’s mouth and dragged him away. Pretty sure I witnessed a murder.”

Cater held up a finger, mouth open like he was about to say something, before he decided not to. He shook his head. “You know what? Let’s just… go to the dorm. I’m not gonna question that. Ace, Deuce, Grim- you guys get back to work, okie dokie? Cay here is gonna take great care of Ellie...”

I made a face when he wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me away from the boys, the man picking Grim up and handing him to Deuce.

“...and get her fed! Coolio? Make the garden photogenic again, ‘kay? Thank you!”

“Oi!” Ace started to yell, annoyed at his upperclassman, but his voice began to fade the farther we walked. “You can’t just-!”

And it’s gone. Wow. Okay. I just got kidnapped.

Cater isn’t my most favorite of people; he’s too touchy and flirtatious for my liking, but I don’t dislike him. He just makes me uncomfortable at times. I think he means well, though. This thought was proven true when he leaned down, whispering, “Seriously though, are you okay?”

“Huh?” I looked up at him with wide eyes.

“You’re not, like, dizzy or something, are you? I mean, I don’t think the nurse would have released you from the infirmary if you weren’t, but…” He frowned, genuinely concerned. “You really scared us all back there, y’know? And… if it wasn’t for you…”

Cater closed his eyes, turning away with a pained expression. He looked off into the distance, staring in the direction the dorm was in.

“Riddle wouldn’t have survived his Overblot. You saved him.”

“I… didn’t?” I was so confused. “You guys were the one who destroyed the jar head.”

“Only because _you_ told us to.” He argued, voice rising in volume. “If you didn’t tell us to aim for that, the ink monster would have killed Riddle! Do you even realize what you did, Ellie? You’re incredible! Reckless, yeah, but incredible. You saved him. You calmed him down, lessening some of his attacks and weakening his guard, and that let us destroy the monster!”

I lowered my head and bit my lip, thinking on it. “I-If… you put it that way, then I _guess_ it does sound kinda cool…”

Cater laughed, pulling his arm away to ruffle my hair again. “You were like some kinda fairy tale hero, Ellie! Riddle’s knight in shining armor! Oh- or maybe you were his _princess_ in shining armor? A warrior princess sounds pretty cool. Not very cute, unless she’s got some super fancy armor on, but...”

I was about to respond, but someone else beat me to it. “I doubt he’ll respond to kindly to that, Cater.” We turned to see Trey smirking at us, pushing up his glasses with amusement in his amber eyes as he walked on over to where we were standing. He folded his arms over his chest. “He doesn’t exactly like playing the “Damsel in Distress” role. Never has, even when we were kids.”

The strawberry chuckled nervously, waving a hand at him. “Aw, c’mon, now~ I meant it in good fun! You won’t… like, tell the dorm leader, will you? You’re not gonna rat out a comrade-in-arms, right?”

“I wonder. Also, are you trying to skip clean-up? You better not be using Eleanora as an excuse.”

“Whaaaat?” Cater almost looked offended, but a bead a sweat had started to form on his face, showing off the truth. Trey had caught him easy. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about, vice dorm head. Ellie here hasn’t had real food all day, so I thought I would share some of the snacks we had laid out in the dorm lounge!”

Trey raised a brow. “I can handle that. You can get back to work.”

His shoulders slumped, the strawberry blond disappointed. “You really are so mean, Trey…”

I tried not to laugh. Really, I did. But I couldn’t help the small snort that escaped, and seeing their gazes turn to me I quickly turned my head, hand over my face. “I said nothing!”

Trey chuckled. Pulling away from a pouting Cater, I awkwardly made my way over to the taller one of the two men, hiding behind him and waving, the hem of his uniform jacket now clutched in my left hand.

“See you~! Have fun.”

“The betrayal is strong.” Cater sniffed, turning away and holding a hand up to his forehead dramatically. “To think there were two traitors among us… I can’t believe it. Left out to rot. I should have known this would happen.”

I watched as Trey rolled his eyes, tensing a little when the man placed a hand on my shoulderblades. “Come on, let’s go. Heartslabyul dorm is this way. I’m sure Riddle won’t mind if you visit; I think he’ll actually be very happy to have some snacks with you.”

“Y-Yeah?”

Trey smiled softly. “Yeah.”

I started to relax, expression softening as I beamed up at him. Keeping a firm hold of his jacket hem, I pumped a fist up in the air, beaming. “Snack time with Riddle, here we go! Woo! You gonna be joining us?”

He laughed. “Well, maybe. I was mostly trying to keep Riddle from overexerting himself today. So I guess I can. Cater has the majority of everything else under control. Despite how he likes to behave and lazy about, he is quite good at these kinds of things.”

Ah. Well, as long as everything is going well that’s all that matters.

I still feel weird about this, but this was just a sign that things were going to be getting better. There was no violence, no chaos, no tyranny. No overly ridiculous rules that would have to be followed. People would stop being so terrified of their dorm leader, and as for Riddle himself…

Well, he can finally start to be his own person. Things were finally calming down. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aight! Now that we got those emotions out of the way, we can get into some more fluffy things. Woo! What did you guys think? Did it turn out okay? I almost had Ace actually slap Eleanora, but decided to change it up at the last second so it's more sad and sweet. His anger had a long time to simmer down into regret and worry, so. (Shrugs) 
> 
> Also Malleus is totally showing off his inner dragon. The name is his now, and he's gonna hoard it. Lol. There is no escape. Also, very interesting that Lilia bit, hmmm??? I wonder who that woman he was talking about was, and even more so who that "lover" is. Mwehehe~ Ah, well, if you follow me on tumblr or have been reading up on Once Upon A Tragedy, you probably already know. Or maybe you haven't and figured it out on your own. Either way- yay!!!! Reveals!!!
> 
> Lilia is still out here being best dad. XD Divus is coming up a close second, though, lol.
> 
> Also I plan on making another twst fanfic after I finish "Once Upon A Tragedy", seeing as I can't get very far with this one until after Diasomnia comes out. I plan on calling it "Till Death Do We Fall" and it'll be an interesting mix of Re:Zero, the time travel theory, the dead Yuu theory, and Russian Doll. Unlike how this is a Malleus appreciation fic, the new story will mostly be a Jack appreciation fic with bits of Leona appreciation as there are two main characters- Iliana, who is seventeen, and Mae, who is nineteen. Hope you guys are looking forward to it! I'm excited. :3 
> 
> As always, thanks for reading and have a wonderful day/night! <3


	29. The Reason Why

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: There is mention of toxic relationships, abuse, and suicide in this chapter. 
> 
> For this is the chapter that gets into the reason WHY Eleanora avoids relationships.

I fell asleep.

It wasn’t intentional, but Trey had me sit down on one of the lounge sofas while he left to go check on Riddle. And I, who had only been subject to such comfy cushions before in my very short visit to Diasomnia, in which I was too anxious to actually focus on the comfortability of the furniture, had sunk into the incredibly soft Heartslabyul sofa immediately as I was much more relaxed.

All the stress and crying had taken a lot out of me, I guess, for the next thing I knew my eyes slid shut and I just… passed out.

And, let me tell you, it felt _good._ So much better than the crappy rundown ones in my dorm.

Someone must have tossed a blanket over me while I slept, because when I woke up all groggy and actually _rested_ I found myself cuddling with one. I was very confused, and only found myself more befuddled when I felt a weight on my side. I barely had time to shift to see what it was when I got a face full of blue hair.

Deuce. He was sitting on the floor in front of the sofa I was on, and the thing that was actually _on_ me was… Ace? Deuce currently had one of my legs captive, using it as a pillow, while Ace had his arms around my waist- effectively keeping me caged. Grim was curled in a ball against my stomach. I raised my eyebrows, deciding not to question it, and lied my head back down.

The boys were probably working themselves to the bone earlier to help clear up all that damage to the garden, and even more than that the stress of everything that’s happened… well, they must have been exhausted. I’m not gonna hold it against them for wanting a nap or even some cuddles. Cuddles were always the best when it came to feeling better.

And family always gave the best freaking cuddles.

Wrapping an arm gingerly around Grim, I started to fall back asleep- but the sound of footsteps and the flash of a phone camera quickly caught my attention. I resisted the urge to furrow my brows, wondering what was going on, though the quiet voice that spoke gave it all away. 

  
“Our freshies are so cute~!” Cater said to himself, typing away on his phone. “Hashtag “troublesome trio”, hashtag “afternoon cuddles”, hashtag “naptime with Ellie”. Aw, I’m so jelly~ I wanna cuddle, too.”

“Do it and you’ll have to write a five thousand word apology essay.” I heard Trey speak, walking over. There was a small _thwack_ sound that was most likely him bopping the strawberry blond upside the head. “Let them sleep. Even Riddle is turning a blind eye to this. Those guys…”

The third-year faltered for a moment, and it was taking every ounce of my will power not to open my eyes and look at them. I wanted know their expressions so badly.

“Those guys had it the worst out of all of us; unlike you and me, they’re actually _close_ to Eleanora. So give them some time to calm down and relax.”

“...Yeah, you’re right. They did us a huge favor by saving the dorm leader, so… I guess it’s the least we can do. Speaking of- we should probably check on him again. You good with getting the tea?”

“On it.”

Their footsteps faded away. After a few minutes I finally opened my eyes, heart aching painfully within my chest. I could feel the tears starting to sting again, and I buried my face in the part of the blanket I was using as a pillow. I really didn’t deserve these guys as my friends; they’ve done so much for me, and I only put them through hell.

_I’m sorry._

I gently began running my fingers through Grim’s fur, watching him breathe for a moment, before closing my eyes again. “Thank you…”

It might have just been my imagination, but it felt like the arms around my waist tightened a little.

Several hours passed before I had to leave.

Though it clearly pained him do so, Riddle woke me up and had to ask me to go as it was curfew for Heartslabyul students soon and neither my trio of friends or I had eaten dinner yet.

He looked a bit awkward standing there, staring at the cuddle pile, cheeks a bit pink with a fist to his lips, the man clearing his throat as loudly as he could to catch the boys’ attention. It was kind of humorous, actually, and I almost laughed at how horrified Deuce looked. He thought he was in serious trouble for falling asleep without permission, and almost passed back out in relief when Riddle dismissed it.

He then told us, in the most polite way he could manage, we need to eat and then return to our separate dorms. Ace was baffled that he was actually allowed to return to his dorm, but now that everything’s been sorted and Riddle had learned the error of his tyrannical ways he had been forgiven and his temporary exile had been rescinded. A flash of disappoint flowed through me at that moment, realizing that-excluding the ghosts- Grim and I were going to be the only ones in the dorm from now.

I wouldn’t get to see Ace and Deuce as often.

But that was fine, right? They had their own lives; there was no reason for us to be together twenty-four seven. Besides, they deserved to have a proper bed to sleep in at a dorm that was actually clean and healthy to live in. I might be a bit lonely without their company, but it was fine.

I folded my arms over my chest and hugged myself, flashing them a bright closed-eye smile. “That’s awesome, you guys! Congrats. I guess I’ll just have to annoy you to the limit whenever I see you in the hallways, or… something.”

“It _was_ only temporary.” Grim commented, kitty brows furrowing as he jumped on my shoulder, curling his tail around my neck. “It’s gonna be quiet without those two idiots around making noise.”

“Oi!” Ace snapped, holding a fist up and glaring at the cat. “Who ya callin’ noisy, you little raccoon dog!?”

Deuce tilted his head, sighing as he placed a hand on his hip. “He’s a cat monster…”

Grim hissed, fur standing on end, his claws digging slightly into my skin. I bit my lip, trying not to laugh as I watched them, almost hating myself for finding their dumb arguments so endearing. “I’m neither a cat _or_ a raccoon, you jerks! I’ll scorch you!”

“Fighting for personal reasons is prohibited on school grounds!” Riddle declared, crossing his arms and staring coldly up at the trio, expression more on the stern side now. “Do not make me have to report you to the teachers, or put you through even more work as punishment! Just because I am trying to soften up on the rules, does not mean I am willing to tolerate such crass behavior! Understood?”

Ace and Deuce both yelped and stood up straight, arms pressed to their sides as they whirled around to face him. “Y-Yes, dorm leader!” They both exclaimed, nervousness clear in their eyes and in the way they held themselves.

“Sorry…” Grim grumbled.

I had muffled my snickers behind a hand, shaking my head, and shortly after that conversation we had all left. Dinner tasted incredible, especially after everything we had been through, and though the table had been quiet as we all ate... this time it felt necessary. So much had occurred in such a short span of time, and we were all exhausted and in desperate need for sustenance.

“You sure you’re alright?” Deuce had asked when we were making our way to Ramshackle. I had been under the impression that I would be returning alone, but then they started following me without hesitation; as if it was just natural for them to do so at this point. “You were… in really bad condition earlier, El- uh, Eleanora.”

He cleared his throat, stopping himself from accidentally calling me a nickname.

I waved him, grinning. “It’s fine, it’s fine~ and this time I’m not lying, promise.”

Ace squinted, hands on his waist as he leaned down, and made a disturbed face as I stepped back.

“What?”

He stared for a moment longer, before standing back up and turning his head with a sigh. “Nothing, nothing. Anyway, make sure you don’t wear yourself out while we’re gone, okay? We won’t be here to help if you collapse or something since we’re moving back to the Heartslabyul dorm.”

“I’m not _that_ helpless.” I stated, raising my eyebrows at him as I reached out to open the door, stepping onto the creaky porch.

A part of me wondered if I should feel offended, though I guess at this point I was just more grateful and touched that they cared so much. The decisive match from before and all the events today had really wiped away any doubts I had about our friendship, and if they were ever mad at or tired of me. They had their faults, and so did I, but that was okay. We pushed through it.

“It’s not that,” Deuce said after a moment, concern flitting across his features, “it’s just… you push yourself too far sometimes.”

That’s…

I paused mid-step, freezing in place as his words hit me. Bangs falling into my face, I quickly glanced up at them and then turned away, worrying my bottom lip. Unsure of how to respond to that, I mumbled quietly, “I just… don’t want to worry you guys. You do enough for me already.”

Deuce frowned at that. “You worry us _more_ when you hide everything, though…”

“I…”

The teen shook his head at me, walking up onto the porch steps, pressing a fist to his chest with a determined look on his face. “Besides, isn’t it the duty of friends to help one another!? There’s no reason to hide anything! We’ll stand with you, and help you through it! We’ve made it this far, haven’t we? There’s nothing we can’t face.”

Grim blinked, surprised at that. “You’re really upbeat about this, huh?”

“W-Well…” Deuce faltered, and I struggled to look at him, feeling the guilt of hiding my curse once more. I should tell them. I know I should tell them, but I wasn’t sure how to go about it. I’m convinced more than ever that they wouldn’t just abandon me, yet trying to find the right time to tell the truth wasn’t going to be easy. “I just…”

“Alright, alright, we get it!” Ace groaned, stepping up and giving Deuce a light push with his shoulder. The blue-haired boy yelped, nearly falling off the staircase. “Enough with the gushy already! Jeez. I’mma throw up. Why do you both have to be so _serious_ all the time? I’ve had enough of your mushy gushiness to last a life time.”

I still wasn’t looking at them, head lowered with my eyes facing the ground. I clenched the doorhandle tightly, hands shaking a little. “I’m… sorry…”

Ace stared, narrowing his eyes, before he let out another groan and violently ruffled his hair, fed up with both us. “Will you just stop!?”

A pair of hands suddenly smacked both sides of my face and I yelped. His fingers then pinched my cheeks, pulling at my face and causing me to cry out.

“I’m sick of seeing that “bad thoughts” face already! I know you’re sad about us leaving, but you’ll still see us at school!” I tried to pry his fingers off, but he just pulled harder and before long I found myself in a very familiar headlock, my voiced protests muffled by the way he was abusing my cheeks. “You don’t have to get all depressed!”

“Yeah.” Deuce agreed, smiling softly, walking over to stand beside the ginger on the porch steps, folding his arms over his chest. He looked like he wanted to reprimand Ace for his behavior, but decided otherwise. “It’s been rough, but... we’re still here. You don’t have to feel bad about relying on us. We rely on you all the time, don’t we?”

“And we can have tons of sleep overs, anyway.” Ace said, finally releasing my cheeks and letting me stumble free, my hands rubbing my poor face with a betrayed pout as I looked up at him. Deuce and Grim looked at the ginger in surprise, and it was then his words finally hit me- leaving my own eyes to widen in shock at his suggestion. “There are _tons_ of scary movies I know you haven’t watched, what with you being an alien and all, and I’m sure I can convince an upperclassman to let us borrow their laptop or projector or something.”

The ginger grinned wickedly, red eyes flashing with mischief.

“Oh, please, no.” I said, cringing as I thought about all the scary movies I witnessed back home. “I hate gore.”

“All the more reason to make you watch them!” Ace teased, leaning over so we were closer in height. He placed a hand on my head, violently ruffling my hair. “Don’t worry, if you get _really_ scared I _suppose_ I can let you hold onto my arm or something~!”

Deuce gasped, unable to believe what he was hearing. “Ace!”

“How kind.” I responded dryly, not at all impressed by his unsavory offer. “I’m more likely to hide behind Deuce, though. Thanks, but no thanks.”

Ace stuck his tongue out. “You’re no fun.”

“Well,” I started, making a face as I pulled out of his grasp, stepping back towards the door and petting the cat monster on my shoulder, “someone in this group has to be the mature one, am I right?”

Grim snorted. “That’s hardly you.”

“Oh, shut it.” I was gonna skin me a mystical creature at this rate, and he had grey fur and tail. “Anyway, we have classes tomorrow, don’t we? I’ll… see you then, I guess.”

I flashed an awkward smile, not really sure how to end this conversation. A part of me really didn’t want to leave them.

“Good night…”

Ace stared, then turned away and scratched the back of his head. “Y-Yeah. Good night. See ya tomorrow, El.”

“See you tomorrow.” Deuce agreed, smiling, seemingly the least bothered out of all of us. “Sleep well.”

I waved at them as they left, watching them disappear from sight before retreating into the dorm with a heavy sigh. A paw on my cheek caught my attention and I turned my head to look at Grim, surprised by the action. His blue eyes bore into mine for a long moment, as if searching for something, and when he found it he lowered his paw and nuzzled his face into my neck.

“I’m really tired.” He said. “Let’s go to bed, henchman.”

I rolled my eyes, but had already started walking. “I’m not your henchman.”

Seriously, these boys were ridiculous. On the bright side, I was already wearing my ceremonial uniform so all I had to do was brush my teeth, wash my face, and use the bathroom before heading to bed, after of which I then promptly collapsed on the mattress fort in the middle of the lounge where Grim was already fast asleep.

The dreams were peaceful, and I fell asleep faster than I thought I would considering that long nap I had earlier. I didn’t really mind it though, but I did grumble a bit when the ghosts woke me up in the morning- acting as the alarm clock I didn’t have to let me know that I needed to get ready for school.

I was not looking forward to it.

I was going to have so much make-up work to do, and I was going to have to confront the teachers and apologize for missing so many days. I was also going to have thank the most intimidating teacher of them all, as if not for him I would still be suffering without medicine.

Medicine which I was now using, because _frick yeah_ I finally have it! I happily used the inhalers and then spent the next thirty minutes doing nothing except breathing in-and-out of the nebulizer mouthpiece. Ah, bless that terrifying man’s soul. He was officially my favorite authority figure in this entire campus.

Well, next to the school nurse. He was really nice. Poma Salvador, was it? Yeah.

Turning off the machine and grabbing my school uniform, which turned out to also be clean, I headed to the bathroom to get ready. Man, this felt so weird. There was little to no coughing, save for the occasional dust that decided it wanted to mess with me. And although there was a lot of sneezing happening, there was no blood.

No vomiting, no gasping, no crying.

I could wash my face and brush my teeth, and even get changed without worries! I almost felt like a whole new person. Running my fingers through my messy hair, I gave myself a once-over; fiddling with my long sleeves and awkwardly grinning at my reflection.

This was okay, right? I still had the bandages on my face, sure, but those would heal soon.

Gods, what would Mr. Horns think if he saw me just approach him out of the blue? Would he know what happened? Silver said rumors have been spreading, and they were both students in Diasomnia. If Lilia saw him then there’s a chance he might have explained the situation, but then again he was probably just leaving it up to me. Either way, I needed to at least try to talk to the dragon fae.

I can’t just… let this go. I don’t want this new friendship ruined because of a stupid misunderstanding. I needed to let him know that I didn’t forget about him.

Things just happened and there was no avoiding it, and I wound up comatose. No one knew we were supposed to be meeting, so it wasn’t like they could go out of their way to tell him that plans were changed and that I wouldn’t have been able to make it. I just… got to gather up the courage, and tell him the truth.

_It’s fine._

He would listen. I’m sure of it. I have faith.

Suddenly I hunched over and let out a loud groan, hands raised up and clinging to ledge of the sink. “I can’t do thiiiiiis~! He’s gonna hate me! No, no. It’s fine. Ugh, but it’s _not_ fine! Am I supposed to just waltz up to his classroom during one of the breaks and be like, “yo, anyone seen a man with horns ‘round here”!? That sounds so stupid!”

Besides, doesn’t everyone in this school hate me? Why would they tell me where to find him? This was going to end in total disaster, and if I do it during the later classes where I’m not actually needed then I won’t have any backup or emotion support! I’ll be all on my own while my friends are in lessons!

I worried my bottom lip, eyelashes fluttering as my vision grew a bit misty, anxiety and concern running rampant inside me. “What should I do…?”

I really don’t want to screw this up. Lilia said outdoor classes might be my best chance of locating him, but who knows how that conversation would go.

Maybe… Maybe I can use the ghost camera as an excuse? Yes!

“Oh my gods, that’s perfect!” My head shot up, eyes wide. I stood, darting out of the bathroom with a surge of adrenaline, relieved to have some sort of plausible reasoning for showing up at his classes unannounced. There was no way he would find this weird. “The headmaster said before that… I needed to take pictures of students! This’ll totally work!”

I rummaged through my room, searching for the discarded camera, and picked it up with a victorious grin, chest heaving a bit as my breathing got a little out of whack from all the movement.

“Haha! I-I can… I can use this…”

I held it with both hands, relief washing over me as I stared down at the device. It was so old and bulky; it was nothing like the modern cameras I was used to seeing. Still… it would get the job done, and that was all I needed it for. I lifted it up, watching as the morning sunlight peaked through the cracks in the room, showing off the dust particles in the air and causing the gold on the camera to shine just right.

“You better watch out, Mr. Horns,” I breathed, smiling as though I had just won this world’s lottery, “because I’mma find you.”

And when I do… we’re going to be the best of friends.

I was practically bouncing on my heels as I hurried down the stairs, passing by Moe and Curly in the process, both of whom looked very surprised to see me so energetic and animated this morning. For one thing, I was _not_ a morning person; I usually shouldn't be interacted with until I had my breakfast. Secondly, they’ve only ever seen me worn out and half-dead because of the lack of medicine and the curse that plagued me, so seeing me move around so much shocked them.

But I was super excited right now, and in an extremely good mood now that I had an excuse to see the dragon fae. My anxiety can go jump off a cliff; it can’t stop me now! Sliding the camera strap over my shoulder and waist, not wanting to have it dangle from my neck and bump into everything, I walked over to the bed where Larry was opening a tuna can for Grim.

I looked at them in confusion, not knowing where they got it. “When did we have…?” I pointed at the can in question, letting my question trail off.

Larry laughed. _“That kid with the red hair brought a couple tuna cans over while you were still in the infirmary. I think he was the dorm leader…?”_

“Ooooh,” I realized, eyes widening, “you mean Riddle.”

That was nice of him. I guess he felt responsible for helping take care of him, seeing as I was unconscious and couldn’t do so. It wasn’t like I could pay for the tuna cans anyway, but still. He didn’t have to do it. That said a lot about him as a person, I think.

He really was good at heart; he just had an extremely rough childhood, and wasn’t able to grow properly as a result.

“Ish tho good!” Grim declared, chewing loudly. I scrunched my nose up, disgusted. “I almosht… don’t hay him anymore!”

“Chew with your mouth _closed_ or I will take that tuna from you.” I threatened. “This is, what, the third time we’ve had this conversation? Stop it.”

The cat monster swallowed and glared at me, then proceeded to scoop up a pawful of what remained of the tuna, and then put in his mouth. He chewed afterwards, very purposefully, with his mouth open to spite me, making sure I got a clear view of the food. Grim then let out a muffled shriek, almost choking when he jumped to avoid me, but I landed on the mattress just in time to snatch him up, bapping him hard on the nose.

“I said _stop it!_ You’re not a child!”

“Lemme go!” He screeched, coughing a bit as he tried to swallow what remained of his meal. “I’ll bite you!”

“I’ll bite back!”

“Fnnaaaagh~!”

“Gah!” I dropped him when he opened his now-empty mouth to start breathing fire, and almost kicked him away as a result. “I said stop!”

“No! I’ll eat how I want!”

I was about to smack him again, the three ghosts snickering and watching in amusement as the fighting took place, when the doorbell suddenly rang. Wait. We had one of those? Since when? Did I just happen to forget about it? Ugh, I’ve been comatose for too long. Then again, so much happened in such a short time that everything was a bit of a blur.

Adventures sucked.

“Hello~!” I jumped when I heard a familiar voice call out, Ace obnoxiously ringing the doorbell a few more times. “Pizza delivery~ just kidding! Oi, El, open up! It’s us! Don’t make us late for breakfast!”

“You could be a bit nicer about it.” I heard Deuce scold him from beyond the door. “She did just recover from the infirmary, after all.”

“Aw, hush it; she’s fine.”

I turned, the cat monster I was dealing with looking just as surprised. While I figured we would see each other in classes and in the hallways, I never expected them to come to the dorm to pick us up. A surge of emotions washed over me, a warmth in my chest as my expression brightened, and with Grim jumping onto my shoulder habitually I made my way over, hurriedly opening the door.

“Morning!” I greeted.

Ace smirked, waving his gloved hand at me, his bare one shoved into his uniform pocket. “Mornin’. You guys ready yet?”

“I am.” I looked at the monster on my shoulder. “What about you, Grim?”

“I would have been _sooner_ if someone didn’t interrupt my tuna eating session!” He said, pressing a paw to my cheek with a bitter scowl. “I told you before that grudges over food are the worst! Are you trying to make me roast ya to bits?”

“I dunno.” I teased. “Am I?”

Grim huffed, but he didn’t move. He simply wrapped his tail around my shoulders, letting it drape freely over my chest. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought that it was his way of saying that he wasn’t actually mad, or that it was his way of trying to stay close to me. He wasn’t exactly the most honest of monster cats.

Amused by his behavior, I shook my head and stepped forward- linking my arms with the two boys in front of me. “Anyway! Let’s go!”

I glanced over my shoulder before we left, the ghosts floating over to watch us leave. I smiled at them, waving at them best as I could.

“See you guys later!”

 _“Have fun!”_ Larry said, waving back with a smile on his transparent face. _“Stay out of trouble!”_

Moe floated over, his mostly solid hand pressing against the door in preparation to close it. _“Make sure you pay attention to your teachers!”_

 _“And let us know if you prank anybody!”_ Curly exclaimed, snickering and flying away when he saw the other two ghosts look at him with stern faces.

I laughed. “Will do!”

Ace raised an eyebrow as he watched the door close, the four us starting to make our way downhill. “What are they- your parents? Since when did they become so doting?”

My mouth opened to respond to that, ready to answer, only for me to close it shortly after. I honestly had no idea. I mean, I guess it all started when they first helped me clean the bath area, and then there was the sleepover where I invited them to join us. They would play pranks on Grim a lot of the time, and they were actually really friendly when they weren’t being mischievous. “I… don’t know…”

Deuce smiled softly as we walked, approaching the dorm’s gate. “Well, at least we know we can count of them look out for you when we can’t. So there’s that.”

“I guess.” Grim said, scrunching his nose up. “I still don’t really like ‘em that much…”

“You’re just salty because they threw you in the bath.” Ace pointed out.

The cat monster hissed.

The walk to the school building went pretty much the same as it ever did, though something was different about it this time. There were no tyrants to stress over, no aggressive or terrifying dorm leaders. We were just students heading to the cafeteria for morning breakfast, about to start the school day.

Ace and Grim bickered like they always did, and Deuce tried to play the mediator before he got dragged into the argument, and I would tsk at them scoldingly while fighting an amused grin. Soon enough _I_ got dragged into the banter as well, but it all ended friendly enough. None of it had been in bad will, the majority of it playful and teasing.

When we got in the line for breakfast, I collected the two trays I would need for mine and Grim’s lunch, and Deuce helped with the actually placing the food on them as I wasn’t able to.

There were no bullies who bumped into me, no delinquents who demanded I hand over everything I was carrying in compensation for breaking the egg on their pasta. I mean, there were stares and a heck ton of whispering when people saw me enter the room with my friends, and I could see a lot of them pointing, but I ignored it. Everyone probably knew about the Overblot at this point.

It was… a little nerve wracking, but not at all surprising.

“Ellie, Deucy, Grim, Ace!” Cater called from the lunch table when he saw us, standing and waving with a big grin on his face. “Over here!”

I blinked, seeing that it wasn’t just him. Trey was there, too, of course, which was normal, but…

“Dorm leader?” Ace went pale.

Riddle was sitting at the lunch table, cheeks a little red from embarrassment. He looked almost shy about sitting there with us, awkwardly twirling the fork in his eggs. “I… thought I should join you all today. Trey is supposed to be keeping an eye on my condition, anyway, so… it seemed the wisest course of action. I trust that isn’t an issue?” He looked up at us, grey eyes flickering uncertainly, as if nervous about being rejected.

Glancing at the boys to my left and right, observing their conflicted expressions, I set the two trays down and took a seat, flashing a bright smile in Riddle’s direction. “Of course you can sit with us! It’s perfectly fine.”

The redhead’s shoulders slumped, the young man visibly relieved by this. Ace and Deuce, meanwhile, looked at me with betrayed expressions. “O-Oi!” The ginger started, raising his voice. “You can’t just decide that without asking us!”

“I-I don’t… have much of an issue with it…” Deuce stammered, unable to bring himself to speak up with his dorm leader right there. Grim scrunched his nose up.

“There you go making decisions on your own…”

“It’s fine~!” I grinned, reaching up and planting my hands on their heads, ruffling their hair a bit roughly as they sat down. Ace sputtered and grimaced, smacking my hands away, while Deuce ducked his head down to avoid it. “We’re all friends here! It’s a-okay. Right, Trey?”

The green-haired third-year looked a bit stunned to have me bring him into this, and he gave a light chuckle as he pushed his glasses up, his movements a bit stiff. “Y-Yes. You’re absolutely correct, Eleanora.” He then looked down at the redhead by his side, reaching over and placing a hand gently on his shoulder, giving it a small squeeze. “See? I told you they would be fine with it.”

Riddle gave a short nod, still not quite meeting our gazes.

“Come on, Riddle, lighten up! No one is mad at you.”

Still not much of a response.

I narrowed my eyes, leaning forward and squinting at the dorm leader. He jolted a little when he noticed my intense gaze, face turning a bit darker shade of red. “Wh-What is it?”

“...Do I need to come over there and hug you?” His eyes widened. “I’ll do it. I’m crazy. I’ll give you all the hugs and there won’t be any escape.”

“I-I just-” Riddle started to stammer, but it was too late. I was already climbing out of my seat and making my way over. “R-Really, it’s-!”

He went silent, face beet red as I wrapped my arms around him, resting my chin on his head. The dorm leader froze in place, face the same shade as his hair. I grinned widely, leaning to side so we were closer in height and so I could get a look at his expression. “You’re seriously fine, dude. You should just be happy we’re all alive. That you’re alive. There’s no need to fret so much.”

Riddle worried his bottom lip, his hands resting on my arms as he thought about my words. “I… suppose that’s true…”

Hugging him for a few more seconds, I gave him a small squeeze before slowly pulling away, gently resting a hand on his head. He looked up at me as I did so, something unrecognizable flashing in his eyes. “Now, come on!” I said, grinning. “Eat up. You, dear sir, need to recover your strength.”

Cater snorted at that, picking his fork up and pointing it at me. “So do you, Ellie. You were the one who was out for several days.”

I pouted, stepping back and placing my hands on my hips. “I’ll have you know I am feeling _fantastic_ right now! Like, look at me! It’s morning- I am _not_ a morning person.” I wandered back over to my side of the table, sliding in between Ace and Deuce, Grim standing on the table so he could actually access his meal. “Then again, I do finally have medicine for my asthma now- which is great. So I can _breeeatheee~!”_

I grasped the edge of the table and leaned back dramatically as I said, trying to get my point across. Cater laughed while Trey and Deuce chuckled, and Ace simply shook his head in disappointment- wondering how he wound up with me as his friend. Grim made a face, not all impressed with my weirdness, and Riddle brought a hand up to his lips, giggling the _cutest_ little giggle ever.

Needless to say, I felt very accomplished. Today was an awesome day.

I leaned back forward, picking up my spoon and getting ready to dive into my cereal. “Anyway, breakfast time! May the teachers _not_ be mad at me for missing so much class.” I took a bite, humming happily as I kicked my legs back and forth, careful not to hit anyone at the table.

This tastes so good. Gods, just knowing I almost died on an empty stomach… eugh. Not how I wanted to go at all. I would like one last meal, please. No- we aren’t focusing on that right now. I wasn’t going to ruin my good mood. Today was going very well, and I wanted to keep it that way. All I needed to do now was figure out how to thank Divus…

The dread must have shown on my expression, because Cater looked at me with curious eyes. “Something wrong, Ellie?”

“No, just…” Ugh. He’s our first period teacher _and_ our homeroom teacher. “...trying to figure some things out.”

“Like what?” Trey inquired curiously, taking a bite of his toast.

I hesitated for a moment. Then I decided there was no harm in telling them, so I took a deep breath and hung my head to the side. “So, you guys know how I was in the infirmary for a while, right? Well, apparently Divus told the doctors about my medical condition, which was _how_ I was able to get the medicine I finally needed because of that.”

“That’s good news, then.” Riddle said, offering a small smile. “You’ll be able to be more active.”

“A bit, yeah. I won’t be on the verge of collapse constantly, at least. But…”

“”But” what?” Grim asked, stuffing his mouth full of omurice. I gave him a sour look, about to scold him, but Trey was already on it. He bopped the cat monster lightly on the nose, only to get smacked by his paw in retaliation. “I’ll bite you, glasses man!”

“Do it and it’s “off with your head”.” Riddle threatened. Grim’s ears went flat at that and he quickly ducked his head, returning to eating his food. The dorm leader looked at me, expression softening again as he waved a hand in the air. “Please, continue.”

I clapped my hands together, grinning a bit awkwardly. “Um, basically, that teacher is terrifying and... I don’t know how to start a conversation where I can say “thank you”?”

The table went silent. It seems everyone was equally intimidated by that man.

Riddle brought a hand to his chin once more, thinking about it; the least bothered out of us all. “I wouldn’t necessarily call him terrifying. He’s simply strict in the way he teaches. I find it rather admirable, actually, though I won’t deny that some of his methods can be questionable. I’m sure if you speak to him before class starts, he’ll be willing to listen.”

That… wasn’t exactly comforting, but I appreciate the attempt. “Yeah… okay.”

Seeing me lower my head, a bit disheartened, he stood. Feeling a hand on my mine, I blinked and looked up, eyes wide, a little uncomfortable at the sudden contact. His grey eyes met mine, staring at me intently. “You’ll be able to do it.” He said firmly. “I’m sure of it.”

What…?

“You’re capable of so many things, Eleanora. You saved me, after all.” Riddle smiled. He tightened the hold he had on my hand, doing his best to comfort and encourage me. “Everything will go the way it was meant to be. There’s no need to worry.”

“Oi, dorm leader!” Ace started, eye twitching. “Do you mind not flirting in front of my meal?”

“Wha-?” Riddle realized he was what he was doing and his face flared red, the boy hurrying to release me, and once he did so he sat back down, taking a defensive stance. “Th-That wasn’t my intention! I was just…”

He awkwardly cleared his throat, coughing into his fist.

“I was just trying to make her feel better, that’s all.”

Cater raised an eyebrow and Trey smirked in amusement, while Deuce stared at the dorm leader with a hesitant frown. Ace, meanwhile, was completely unconvinced. Though it was weird, I decided I wasn’t going to think too much on it and instead tilted my head, playing dumb. “I’m not so sure that was flirting…”

“It was a _hundred percent_ flirting.” Ace deadpanned, bumping his fist lightly against my skull. “You’re just dense and don’t notice who the wolves are. Riddle and Cater? Wolves.”

“Humans are weird.” Grim stated, disturbed by all of us and our weird mortal ways. “What the heck does “flirting” even mean?”

Riddle glared at Ace. “What did you just call me?”

Cater’s lips curled up into a mischievous grin, leaning forward and holding a finger up at Grim. “Well, you see, little innocent one, flirting is when someone has _really_ strong feelings or has an attraction to another person, and-”

“Cater!”The dorm leader was glaring at him now, face as red as could be. “Stop it! I am not flirting with Eleanora!”

I smacked my hand to my face, trying very hard not to cringe at this entire conversation. “Can… Can we just _not_ have this talk right now? Please? That’d be great, thanks.”

I would really rather not have to reject him in front of everyone if he actually did hold some weird misguided feelings towards me.

“Besides, you all know relationships aren’t my thing.”

At least, everyone except the redhead did. Riddle was now looking at me in surprise, with- and I really hope this wasn’t the case- something akin to _disappointment_ in his eyes. It wouldn’t even make sense if he did have a crush on me.

I’m pretty sure he has some weird romanticized version inside his head of how I act or am as a person, because there’s no way anyone with a proper mind would view me in a romantic way. There have been so many times I’ve been rejected without ever even confessing, or have overheard the person I cared about insulting me. I’m barely likeable, there was absolutely no way I’m romanceable.

“Hey, Ellie…” Cater began curiously, looking at me. “Why _do_ you avoid relationships? Are you aromantic or something?”

“I…”

I bit my lip and awkwardly fiddled with my silverware.

“I just don’t... trust people, I guess?”

The group all stared at me, and I found myself shifting uncomfortably in my seat. This was a seriously personal question. Inhaling shakily, I reached over and took a drink of my tea, trying to calm my nerves and get my thoughts together. There was no way to talk about this so casually.

Trey frowned, setting his drink down. “What do you mean?”

“I-I mean… back home, there were… a lot of toxic people, you know?” I tried to explain. Understanding flashed in his amber eyes, but then something darker took place in his expression. “And… I witnessed a lot of them; my siblings relationships, mostly. Their significant others were always…”

I blinked a few times, eyebrows furrowing as the pain settled into my chest, heart aching as I remembered the torture my family went through. I ignored the feeling of everyone staring at me, instead fiddling with my fingers as I tried to calm myself down, the anxiety rising back up the more I thought about the past and about my home world.

“They were always either super abusive or super manipulative. One girl would hit my brother a lot, and… I actually saw her do it a few times… and then when she was out of the house she would cheat on him with several men. My sisters, on the other hand, got involved with super manipulative guys, and one kept talking about how… h-how he would…”

I lowered my head, feeling a lump start form in the back of my throat, my lips curling back as I tried to choke down the sob.

“He kept talking about how he would kill himself if she left him. Then _he_ cheated on her later, too. My other sister had a boyfriend that tried to convince her that she was crazy, knowing she had depression, and tried to control every aspect of her life. She… She almost took _her_ lifebecause of him. Then there were some girls I knew back in high school. Um... one… one of them had an emotionally manipulative boyfriend, who forced her to sleep with him, and the other had one similar to my first sister’s boyfriend- as he kept threatening to kill himself, too, and put her in situations she was really uncomfortable with. He refused to take "no” for an answer.”

This silence was suffocating, and feeling the tears trying to happen I took another drink of my tea, waiting a few moments to calm down.

“A-And… And the process just kept repeating, you know?” I gave a stiff shrug, really wishing this subject hadn’t been brought up and that people would stop trying to insinuate someone was flirting with me. “They kept choosing really bad people. So it… it made me think. And then, growing up, my dad always said to me that high school relationships would never last and that people would take advantage of me the first chance they got, so adding to that I just… stopped. I found myself actively avoiding it.”

“I…” Cater faltered, unsure of how to respond to such a heavy drop of information. “I’m sorry, I didn’t… know…”

“A-And, like, I mean,” I continued, unable to stop now that my mouth was moving, “I wouldn’t even know how _I_ would act in a relationship. Like, what if I became a terrible person myself? I don’t want to become someone who would hurt another, especially if I loved that person. And, on top of that, why would anyone even want to date me anyway? How would I know if I could trust them? What if I fall into the same trap? I just…”

I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head.

“I just… don’t know. So I don’t deal with them. I helped my friends- back when we _were_ friends- get out of their bad relationships, a-and even helped them deal with their stalkers, but… that’s it. Even if I do end up crushing on someone, which I _always_ freaking do and I hate it, it never goes anywhere. I don’t let it. I normally just squash the feelings until they disappear. Either that or I get hardcore rejected because the person figured it out without me saying anything.”

I gripped the glass in my hands tightly, staring down at the liquid sloshing inside.

“So… yeah. It’s, um, it’s easier that way, I guess. Safer.”

I lifted my head up, gazing at Cater with pleading eyes.

“So… So can we _please_ stop with the dating jokes and stuff? I’m sorry, but I… I’m not interested. I refuse to be. I know you’re a good person and I know you’re probably just having fun with it, but I… I can’t. I’m not. …I’m sorry.”

No one said anything. I knew it was probably a bad idea to tell them this, heck they might even find my reasoning stupid, but it was the truth. I was terrified of being in a relationship. I wouldn’t even know if I could trust the person I got together with, or if I could even trust myself. I’ve seen it happen, people changing once they get with someone.

They hide their true personality to lure you in, and then you’re trapped forever. Sometimes it doesn’t even happen like that. Sometimes it happens simply because there was a side about yourself you never knew, and then it unleashes because you’re in unknown territory and you become this terrible _thing_ that’s barely even a person. You wind up a psychopath.

I don’t want to be abused, manipulated, or cheated on. I don’t want my emotions toyed with and then be guilted into staying in an unhealthy relationship. I don’t want to give myself up out of fear of the person leaving. I don’t want any of that. I don’t…

I don’t want to be abandoned or betrayed.

And knowing that, knowing all of these things, only makes my heart hurt _worse_ because I know I can’t easily crush the feelings I have now. I wanted to find love, I wanted to _be_ loved, but I was too scared and that filled me with a suffocating loneliness that just refused to go away.

So now I’m stuck in a cycle of panicking and pining over the dragon fae I met recently, knowing I should avoid him yet these stupid emotions not letting me do so. I seriously knew next to nothing about him, yet just thinking about him set my dumb heart aflutter. I can remember so _vividly_ his sickeningly addictive smirk and the way it felt to hold his hands in my mine.

I’m not even sure what the worst part was anymore about all this.

Having fallen head-over-heels for him despite my determination to die alone, or the fact that if I did somehow get convinced to pursue a relationship it would be with someone from a completely different world. A world in which I might leave sometime in the future, thus terminating any relations I had here. Not to mention that if we did miraculously end up together, he was immortal. I would die in a blink of an eye.

Gods, this place really is a nightmare. I finally gets friends- _true friends_ \- and I might have to leave them. I really keep bringing hurt upon myself, don’t I? I’m the one going out of my way to talk to people, to help them, and even to clear up any and all misunderstandings that might have taken place.

And in the end, if I do get sent back home, all pain caused is going to be because of my foolish decisions. My inability to avoid seeking comfort and friendship.

I’m such an idiot.

“You know…” Trey suddenly said, snapping me out of my gradually growing abyss of dark and negative thoughts, “I don’t think someone who is so concerned with becoming a bad person is actually someone who _is_ a bad person, nor do I think they’ll _become_ one.”

What…?

I stared at him with wide eyes, wondering if I was hearing right. Was he messing with me right now? No, he wouldn’t do that.

But then why is he… saying this…?

Trey folded his arms together atop the table, leaning over with an expression of utmost seriousness. “I get why you might be afraid, with all you said being considered, but I just can’t see you as the type of person who would change personality just because you met somebody. People _change_ in relationships, sure, but not so drastically. More over, don’t most people get into relationships with people they’re already close with?”

“Trey…” Riddle looked at the vice dorm leader in surprise.

“Wouldn’t you have introduced that person to all your friends, to your family, and/or have met _their_ friends and family before getting together? A lot of kids just start dating because they think it might be fun, and I know a lot of adults use those sketchy websites to meet people, but shouldn’t the same logic apply even in that situation? Instead of getting serious right away, you can just take your time. Get to know them. Find out how everyone else feels about the person you’re interested in. See if they trust them.”

Trey gave a soft smile, something almost sad in his eyes.

“Wouldn’t it be safer that way?”

Ace, Deuce, Cater, Grim, and Riddle were all looking at the third-year as though he had just enlightened their lives with wondrous knowledge. I stared at him for a long moment, blinking a few times whenever my vision blurred, no words able to escape past my lips.

I looked down, hands slowly setting the glass I was holding down, brain struggling to process all that I’ve been told and attempting to come up with a way to contradict it. To say that it _wasn’t_ safe. I mean, logically I’m aware that you should get to know a person before you date them, but until now my mind never fully processed what that would actually entail.

“I…” My hands fell into my lap, and I bit down hard on my trembling bottom lip, feeling the tears fall and drop onto my knuckles as my fingers clutched at my skirt. “I don’t… I…”

Trey stared for a moment before sighing, tilting his head with an awkward smile, scratching his cheek. “Ah, well, I’m not here to change your mind. It’s all up to you, in the end. I just wanted to share my thoughts on the matter. Sorry if it was out of line.”

“N-No, you’re…” My brows furrowed, and I looked up at him again before staring back down at my lap. “You’re fine. I… I just…”

What? I was just _what?_ He had made a very good point.

Trey had single handedly shot down every argument I could have made. If I did things exactly as he said, then there shouldn’t be anything to be afraid of. Relationships were work, I knew that, but… what if you put in the work and the person still betrays you? You would be left heartbroken and alone regardless. There was no point.

Or… maybe there was and I was just too scared to see it.

I inhaled deeply, shaking my head and sniffling as I frantically wiped at my face. “S-Sorry, that…” 

I had no idea what to say.

“That got really dark…” I let out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry. We should… We should finish eating. The bell might ring soon.”

Ace, Deuce, and Grim frowned at me, while Riddle, Cater, and Trey all looked concerned, but neither argued or tried to continue the conversation when they saw me eating my cereal, desperately trying not to cry anymore. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So fun fact: "Once Upon A Tragedy" is completed and is only seven chapters, so if anyone's interested in learning the story behind the curse- feel free to check it out. :D There's even a call back to chapter 25 when Malleus enters El's dreams. 
> 
> Also! It's been reveeaaaled! The reason behind her avoiding relationships. I figured now would be a good time to get into that, especially since we have a very important meeting soon ;) I have a very special event in mind for when that happens, and it's gonna be the cutest darn thing ever. We takin' this slow burn to the fullest. Not exactly Jane Austen level slow burn, but still slow burn. It's all about the mutual PiNinG. 
> 
> (Ahem) Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! And I'm really glad that those of you who read "Once Upon A Tragedy" liked it. I was super worried. 
> 
> As always, thank you for reading (you guys make my day, honestly, and your comments give me inspiration to keep going) and have a wonderful day/night wherever you are! <3


	30. Heart Of A Fool

After that awkward conversation during breakfast, in which I’m pretty sure I destroyed everyone’s good mood, us first years headed to class. Honestly, I wondered why I was even allowed to talk sometimes. Saying I was uncomfortable should have been enough, but I had to explain my actual reasoning for avoiding relationships.

I lowered my head, feeling a bit drained of motivation and energy as the guilt sunk in. Grim was at a loss, not wholly understanding what just happened yet knowing enough to realize that what we spoke about wasn’t pleasant. He nudged my cheek with his paw, frowning. “Oi, Eleanora. You gonna be okay?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah.” Wait, did he just use my name? Wow, that’s rare. I flashed him a weak smile. “Sorry. I was thinking.”

“That’s a dangerous past time.” Ace commented, hands behind his head as we entered the classroom.

“No more dangerous than you calling Riddle a wolf.” Deuce said, smirking at the ginger. “He looked like he was going to cut off your head.”

“Psht! As if he could.” The ginger waved him off as we sat down. “Trey would have body tackled him before he could get the first syllable out! He’s not allowed to use his _unique magic_ right now, remember?”

Grim gasped, and I carefully pulled him off my shoulder and set him down on my lap.

“That jerk-! He totally threatened me earlier!” The cat monster hissed. “I’ll scorch him next time! No one messes with the Great Grim!”

“It’s called bluffing.” I informed, trying not to focus too much on the way the teacher had seen us and was now walking over, wasting no time at all he decided he was going to be the one to initiate the dreaded conversation. I yelped when a riding crop hit against the top of the desk, looking up with wide eyes at the man before us. “G-Good morning!”

Divus retreated the riding crop, smacking it lightly against his gloved palm with a smirk. “Good morning, puppy. Stand and follow me like a good dog, will you? We need to have a talk.”

Oh no.

I could feel the color drain from my face as he started to walk towards the classroom door, his striped coat flowing behind him with each step. Ace looked like he was going to laugh at my misery, but Deuce quickly smacked him on the shoulder to get him to stop. Carefully setting Grim on the desk, who looked very unimpressed with the two boys, I carefully maneuvered past Ace to follow the teacher into the hallway.

Once we were outside, I stood as still as possible, looking up at him nervously. Talking to a teacher has never been so nerve-wracking, I swear. I thought I was going to have a heart attack with how stressful this silence is.

“So…” The teacher began, voice calm and collected and as intimidating as ever, his grey eyes staring down at me with an intensity I couldn’t quite describe. “You’ve recovered.”

“Uh… m-mostly, yeah.” I stammered, swallowing down the lump in my throat and grabbing at my hands, fiddling with my fingers and running my thumbs over my scars. “I mean, I still have a few cuts that haven’t healed yet, but… I’m okay.”

“So the worst of the injuries are healed?” He inquired.

My voice caught in my throat at the tone of voice he used, though oddly enough the effect he had on me when we first met wasn’t as strong now. I wondered if that had something to do with my current affection towards a certain dragon faerie. The tone he was using now also wasn’t really something that flustered me, more as it just startled me. It felt almost… parental, in a sense?

“I trust that Poma wouldn’t have let you wander out of his infirmary without ensuring you were in top condition. Despite how he may act at times, he does take his work very seriously. You were in really bad shape, Miss Quince.”

“Uh, n-no, my… my ribs are all healed!” I waved my hands in front of me defensively, mildly panicking. I was freaking out so much that I didn’t even notice the implication that he and the nurse were on a first name basis. “I mean, my ribs were healed when I left, and this fae friend I have healed my ankle the rest of the way earlier, but… I’m fine. I’m…”

I took a deep breath, trying to steel myself for what was about to occur next.

“I’m okay. Which is… also thanks to you, actually.”

Divus blinked, his attention definitely caught now. “Oh?”

I nodded, looking up at him anxiously, tugging at my sleeves. “Y-Yeah. The nurse said… he said that you told the doctors about my medical condition? If not for that, then… I would be in even worse shape now. So… thank you.”

A small smirk spread across his face, lips tilting upwards in a way that I _knew_ would have left me a fumbling mess before when we first met, yet now only slightly intimidated me.

“So the puppy knows to _not_ bite the hand that feeds it. Very good.” He stepped forward, tapping the riding crop in his hand, and I choked- leaning my head back when he placed it under my chin. “You had the staff very worried, little one. You are aware of that, are you not?”

“Uh…” I wasn’t sure how to answer that. “...not... really…?”

I wasn’t even supposed to be here. I was never meant to be a student.

It was a miracle I had lasted this long, or even got as far as I did in this place. I vaguely remember being told to rely on the teachers if something troublesome ever occurred, but that felt so long ago it might as well have never happened. “I-I know I freaked out some classmates, but…”

Divus pulled the riding crop away, the top of it bumping lightly against my chin, and he folded his arms, lips turned downwards in a frown as he stared at me- his expression stern. “You may have been summoned by mistake, but do not misunderstand. You are still one of our students. Therefore your health and safety, along with your education, is our main priority. If something happened to you and you failed to recover, that would not only reflect badly upon the school- but on us, who have failed to protect you. Do you understand?”

I opened my mouth to answer only to pause, lowering my head for a moment to intake that information, before giving a small nod. I felt like a small child who had just been scolded by her father. It wasn’t my intention to get hurt; I had just panicked and acted on instinct during the battle, adrenaline being the only thing that kept me moving as I tried to help Riddle. I never once imagined things would have gone so terribly.

“Y-Yes, sir…”

“Yes…?” He began and trailed off, raising an eyebrow expectantly.

Oh, I take it all back; I _hate_ this man.

I cringed, feeling the barest trace of heat rise to my face as I looked up at him, wearing an almost stubborn pout. “Y-Yes… Master Crewel.”

He chuckled, and I blinked when his hand rested atop my head- petting my hair. I went completely still at the touch, wondering if this was actually happening or if this was one very long dream. I was wholly expecting to be yelled at, so this was a pleasant surprise.

“Good puppy.” Divus praised. “Now come; there is quite a bit you need to catch up on, as well as a _lot_ of homework you have missed. I expect you to have it all completed and turned in to me at my desk by the end of the week.”

Ah, hell. I’m screwed.

Maybe I can sweet talk someone into helping me with it… ugh, but who? I don’t know if any of the upperclassman Heartslabyul boys are good with math or chemistry. Trey is good with baking, so maybe he might be able to help? It’s sort of the same thing, only… food.

No, wait, that’s basically comparing geography with art. Those two things are _not_ the same. Honestly, I wanted to smack that teacher back in high school. Being able to draw and being able to figure out the circumference of a freaking triangle or whatever is completely different! Them both having shapes meant nothing. Did he have an art degree? I think not.

I mean, I don’t either, but my one sister did- and she completely agreed with me on that subject. So! There’s that. Wait…

Do triangles even have a circumference? Is that only circles?

I held back a groan as I followed the teacher into the classroom, taking a seat at my desk between my friends, burying my face in my hands. Deuce looked at me in concern. “What happened…? Did you get in trouble?”

“No, just…” I worried my bottom lip, looking up and turning to face the ginger on my left. “Hey, Ace?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Yeah? What is it?”

“Do… Do triangles have circumferences? And diameters? I… I don’t remember.”

Ace blinked. His red eyes stared at me for a minute, a minute so long I could feel myself growing embarrassed and ashamed at my lack of mathematical knowledge, when his shoulders suddenly started shaking and a puff of air escaped his lips. He then had to clamp a hand over his mouth, desperately trying to muffle his laughter so the teacher wouldn’t call him out, the ginger hunching over at his desk with tears in his eyes.

“Y-You… You…” Ace wheezed. “You’re as dumb as Deuce!”

“Oi!” The blue-haired teen protested, offended. “I’m not dumb!”

“Watch it, puppies!” Divus snapped, hearing them raise their voices. He smacked his riding crop against his red goved palm, sending the classroom into silence. “Keep the noise down. Class is about to start.”

So much for not getting yelled at.

Although… classes… did not make much sense to me now. I was so lost, my brain started to hurt trying to keep up and understand what was being taught. There was no salvaging this. I was completely screwed.

Trein was at least polite when it came time for me to talk to him, as I had forced myself to apologize for missing so many classes. He actually seemed rather surprised by the apology, and apparently took it as a sign that I was serious about learning from him and the other teachers.

I guess that got me on his good side?

Unlike Divus, he gave me two weeks to catch up to all the missed material, and would let me take the next test a few days after the rest of the students to make sure I wouldn’t be left behind. Part of it probably had to do with the fact that I wasn’t from this world, so my knowledge of everything and how it worked was even less than that of the average student, but hey; I’ll take whatever help I can get at this point. I won’t complain.

Third period went as well as could be expected. I had Ace and Deuce give me the locker number, seeing as I wouldn’t have to get exercise like the rest of them, so I waited until everyone was out of the changing room to head in and get dressed. I decided that I would just keep the uniform on until the end of the school day, as this was my last real class.

It would be super helpful for moving around later, too, when I would need to go searching for class 3-D.

...Is… Is this stalkerish? I feel like I’m being stalkerish. Although, in all fairness, Lilia did give me the class number, and I do need to talk to Mr. Horns. I’m not hunting him down for some ridiculous reason. Gods, I really hope he doesn’t see me and think it’s weird.

I fiddled with the camera, standing beside Vargus as he cheered on the students. “Keep those legs moving, you beansprouts! Work those muscles to the fullest! Ah, Miss Quince! Having trouble with that?”

Hm?

I blinked, startled when he reached over and yanked the camera out of my hold. “H-Hey-!”

“You hit this button here.” He pointed at the device, and I cut myself off mid-protest, realizing what he was doing. “Why, I remember seeing my parents use these when I was but a lad! It should print out a small photo up here, and you can place them in the container connected to the strap for safekeeping… see?”

My eyes went wide, watching carefully. “Oooh… that’s so cool!”

He handed the camera back to me with a large grin, and I beamed up at him.

“Thank you!”

The ridiculously large and buff man laughed, hands on his hips. “No problem, little sprout! It’s a shame you can’t work your muscles… but you can at least work your mind! Now, be quick- take a few pictures of me! Huzzah! How’s this pose?” I almost snorted when he flexed his arms. “Is it not the visage of a truly muscular and powerful magician?”

Holding the camera up, I aimed the screen and took a shot. “It’s perfect. Ten out of ten, teach.”

“That’s _Coach_ Vargas!”

“Aye-aye, Coach Vargas, teacher, sir!”

After taking a few more photos, I could see Ace stick his tongue out at me from the track field, running alongside Deuce who was ahead of him by about two feet. Grim was running behind them, exhausted, yet there was a determination in his blue eyes. Turning around, I snapped a quick photo of them as well, doing as the teacher showed me and then carefully sticking the little polaroid-like photos in the little strap case.

“You can do it, you guys!” I cheered, waving at them after I was done. Deuce ran faster after that, wearing a grin so wide it almost seemed to split his face in two. He really did love this class, didn’t he? Ace and Grim seemed to take Deuce moving faster as a challenge, for they quickly sped up as well. “I believe in you~! You’re doing great!”

“Hurry it up!” Coach Vargas shouted at those that were lagging behind. “The last five students that complete the mile have to do a hundred push-ups!”

After class I had to explain to the guys why I didn’t change out of the track suit. As we made our way to the cafeteria for lunch, they looked at me completely baffled, unable to comprehend why I would want to head out on my own. I told them that it was to take some pictures of students, as I knew if I told them about the dragon fae they would never let me go.

“You’re kidding, right?” Ace said, watching as Deuce plopped some mushroom steak on my tray and then set aside some stir-fried rice for Grim. “What if some jerks attack you? You won’t be able to defend yourself!”

“And _that’s_ why I’m wearing pants.” I stated bluntly, raising my eyebrows at him. I was taking every counter measure I could think to deal with bullies and even perverts. Worst case scenario, I bludgeon a creep with my camera or stab him with the pencil I have in my pocket. “I decided to not wear the skirt for a reason, you know. Besides, I have the school staff on my side… I think.”

I thought about it.

“Yeah, I’m... pretty sure they’d help. I’m also friends with Lilia, remember? People are scared of Diasomnia. And I highly doubt after that Overblot incident anyone is going to approach me willy-nilly; they should know a few scratches aren’t gonna keep me down. I’m also friends with Riddle- a dorm leader? That should keep them away.”

Deuce shook his head, sighing. “Those were _so_ not scratches, Eleanora…”

“Ooh, gimme that! And that one, too!” Grim exclaimed, pointing with his paw at the food he wanted. The blue-haired teen looked at him exasperated, but did as told. “Heehee~ it all looks so good! I’m never tired of these flavors!”

“What class did you even say you were looking for again?” Ace asked, frowning as he stepped forward in line, picking up some pasta. “Third year class D? Is there someone you know in there?”

Frick. Ace was always smarter than he liked to let on.

“Was it some dude you met before the decisive match?”

“...Maybe.” I sighed, knowing I was caught. “I don’t know his name, okay? But I promised to tell him how everything turned out.”

If I told him it was Mr. Horns he would never let me go. I still remember his reaction in the library, and how protective he had gotten. If he knew, he would drag me to classes with him and the other two. I can’t let that happen.

“How do you _not_ know his name?”

“He wouldn’t tell me!” I exclaimed, gradually becoming more and more defensive the more skeptical he got. Realization seemed to dawn on his face. Aw, hell. He figured it out.

“It’s him, isn’t it?” Ace asked, red eyes wide, before his face contorted into a suspicious glare. He pointed a finger at me accusingly. “You’re going to see that weirdo from the library!”

“Sh-Shut up! He’s not that weird!”

“You barely know him!” The ginger protested. “He could be a wolf!”

“All men are wolves at this point!”

“Exactly! You can’t trust them!”

“What, so I can’t trust you?”

Ace froze. He turned his head, as if he had just gotten slapped in the face. “Holy shit… Deuce…”   
  


“Huh?” The poor boy looked so confused. “What is it?”

He looked at him, unable to believe it. “You and I… we’re both men, aren’t we? That makes us wolves.”

“Wha-!?” Somehow catching on, his face flared pink. Deuce ended up stammering. “W-We are _not_ wolves!” He looked down at me, panicked. “We’re not wolves! You know that, right!? W-We would never- the two of us- I…”

“I’m such a fool.” Ace stated dramatically, pressing a hand to his face, covering his eyes. “All this time… and here we were…”

Oh my gods. He’s totally messing with me right now. I shook my head and rolled my eyes, shoving him lightly with my elbow. “Knock it off, dude! Jeez, you’re freaking Deuce out!”

Ace snickered, lowering his hand to see that the blue-haired teen had stopped functioning. He snapped his fingers in front of his face, and it took a few words to actually snap him out of the spiralling unwanted journey his brain had sent him on. Grim shook his head and made a comment about how we were all a bunch of idiots, and after we finished getting our food we made our way to the lunch table.

We ended up sitting with Riddle, Trey, and Cater again, but thankfully the conversation went in a much brighter direction this time. Trey informed us he was thinking about trying out some new recipes, and invited us over to taste test them when they done, and Cater started rambling about magicam. Riddle asked how our studies were going, and after the table got quiet for a bit because people ran out of things to talk about I took my chance to speak.

“So…” I casually tried to bring up. “...does anyone know where the third-year classrooms are? I need to find classroom D.”

Cater _choked_. Trey was quick to smack him on the back, but it didn’t do much except make him cough more. The strawberry blond frantically waved a hand, gesturing for him to stop, and then held a finger up towards me to tell me to wait while he chugged down his drink. Gasping, he looked at me with wide olive eyes.

“Why do you want to go there of all places!?”

I blinked. “Well, I need to take pictures of students like the headmaster said, and… there’s also someone there I need to talk to. I promised.”

“Promised _who!?”_ He exclaimed, seemingly terrified over something I couldn’t quite understand. “Do you even realize who is in that class!? Malleus Draconia! The craziest of the crazy! I know you’ve been making friends with Diasomnia students, but that’s insane!”

Oh. Oh, boy. Okay. Um.

“Th… That’s… I’m sorry. What?” I was having trouble processing this. “You mean to say that… out of all classrooms…”

I tried to speak slowly, unable to comprehend this new reveal.

“...Malleus Draconia… a _freaking prince_ might I add… is in class 3-D?”

Cater nodded fervently, practically standing up, his palms pressing against the tabletop as he leaned forward. “Yes, Ellie, that’s exactly what I’m saying! Who do you even want to talk to that’s in that class? What person could be so important that you’d risk bumping into Malleus!?”

“Uh…”

Ace rolled his eyes, raising a fist and bopping me upside the head. I yelped, ducking down and cradling my skull, glaring up at him. “Some weirdo she met in the library.”

“For the last time, he _isn’t_ a weirdo! Jeez.” I bit into my mushroom steak a bit aggressively, annoyed by how much he kept insulting him. He didn’t even know him. He’s never even met him! Mr. Horns has been nothing but nice to me. I chewed and then swallowed, making a face and almost glaring at the ginger. “I’ll have you know he was actually really hecking polite!”

“I’m just saying,” Ace grimaced, “you shouldn’t trust someone who won’t even tell you their name!”

“Eh?” Cater looked back-and-forth between us. “You don’t know his name, Ellie?”

Trey made a face, pushing up his glasses. “That… does sound sort of suspicious.”

“Agreed.” Riddle nodded, frowning deeply. “You shouldn’t go speak to him alone.”

I leaned my head back, resisting the urge to groan. “Guys, I _swear_ I know what I’m doing, okay? He only refuses to tell me his name because he thinks I’ll be scared of him. He’s super nice, I promise.”

“That doesn’t make it better!” Cater exclaimed. He was legitimately panicked now. “That only makes it worse!”

I grasped the edges of my tray, tempted to get up and start searching for the classroom now. “It’s not his fault people are afraid of him! It isn’t like he goes out of his way to terrify everyone. He just happens to be, like, super strong with magic or something. Plus, he’s a fae! You remember what you said about Diasomnia before, right? How it’s the dorm everyone avoids? He’s in that dorm!”

“I don’t know, Eleanora.” Riddle said, crossing his arms with a frown. “I hate to admit it, but you should listen to both Ace and Cater on this. It doesn’t seem wise.”

“Yeah, and why are you defending him so much anyway?” Ace demanded, staring down at me.

“Uh, because’s he done nothing wrong?” I retorted, speaking matter-of-factly.

“Eleanora…” I heard Deuce say from the other side of me. I hesitated upon noticing the tone of his voice, and almost cringed when I saw the worried look on his face. “I really don’t think you should go. It sounds dangerous, and you won’t have us or Grim there to protect you if something happens.”

I almost listened to him for a second. His sad puppy dog eyes were very much a weakness of mine, and I hated it. My resolve nearly crumbled into pieces when I looked at him. _Damn it._ No. I can’t give up. I have to do this.

“No! I…” I shook my head stubbornly. “I promised I would talk with him, and then I fell unconscious. He’s probably super mad at me right now. I-I need to fix that. I’m sorry, but… I…”

Some of the fire left me and I slumped over, staring down at the table with defeated eyes.

“I don’t… want him to hate me.”

“Ellie…” Cater began, only to trail off. He frowned, eyebrows knitted together in concern. “Are you really sure about this…?”

I nodded, worrying my bottom lip. “Yeah. I trust Lilia, and he seems to trust the person I’m looking for. So… please,” I looked up at him and everyone else at the table, “can’t you all trust me? Just this once? I really want to be friends with him.”

Trey sighed, tilting his head. “I don’t think it’s a matter of “trust” or something like that. It’s more that we’re just worried you’re getting yourself involved with someone dangerous. But… Eleanora, if something _does_ happen…”

His amber eyes met mine, stern.

“You better come to us, got it? We won’t forgive you if you hide it. We want to help.”

“...Okay.” I flashed an awkward smile, ignoring the painful warmth crushing my chest and the slight sting in my eyes. “I mean, where else would I go? You guys and the ghosts are all I have.”

That seemed to do the trick.

They all relaxed, though they were clearly still bothered by me running off on my own. Even Grim was casting the occasional glance up at me, as if disapproving of my decision, but when lunch ended and the bell rang for everyone to head to class- Riddle having left fifteen minutes prior in accordance to the rules, as some habits were just too hard to break- we all bid each other adieu and agreed to meet up later in the Hall of Mirrors.

It was the only way to convince them. If I didn’t show after the end of the school day, they would forbid me from going anywhere on my own ever again. Which, admittedly, was sort of lame, but I appreciated the fact that they cared and were just trying to look out for me.

Cater was nice enough to walk me to the third-year corridor, with the promise to _not_ interact with Malleus Draconia if I saw him, though he seemed to have forgotten that I had no clue what that dude even looked like. I guess he would be rather elegant with his movements, maybe speak with a rather formal pattern and tone, but other than that… I had no idea.

How am I supposed to avoid someone if I don’t know what they look like or who they are?

No to mention… nobody was even here! Gods, this was such a mistake. I was just awkwardly chilling against the wall, fiddling with my camera for a good five minutes while all the students went to their classrooms- of which some cast glances at me and even started whispering again- but no one entered classroom 3-D.

Did they not have classes today? What was going on? I paced outside the door, glancing in occasionally and then looking around to make sure no one saw me. I felt incredibly suspicious and weird, and I prayed no teacher would see me and put me in detention for misbehavior. Ugh, what do I do?

Maybe… they were outside? Lilia did suggest that I might be able to find Mr. Horns during outdoor classes. There’s a good chance they’re at the sports field right now. Oh, but what if they’re not? Maybe they were in the auditorium, or gymnasium, or somewhere else entirely. I had no idea.

_“Is something wrong, little one?”_

I almost screeched, barely clapping a hand over my mouth in time to avoid disrupting the other classes. Whirling around, I tried to locate who was speaking. “Wh-Who said that!?”

_“Over here.”_

It was… coming from inside the classroom?

I cast one more quick glance around the hall before entering the room, wandering about before stopping in the direct middle of the floor, highly confused. “Where…?” I know I hadn’t imagined it. Then again, the voice was distinctly feminine. There weren’t supposed to be any girls in this school.

 _“Up here.”_ My eyes moved up a wall, gazing past a couple of wall portraits. _“Stop.”_

I blinked, seeing the lips on a painting move. Wait. Did that one just…?

“W-Whoa!” My eyes went wide, almost bugging out of my skull. “Y-You can talk!?”

The young renaissance-esque-looking woman stared at me in confusion. _“You’re such a strange one now, aren’t you? It’s not odd for portraits to talk here at Night Raven College. If anything was odd, I’d dare say it was you; what with being both a magicless and female student. You’re the rarest thing in this school.”_

“Okay, but where I’m from portraits don’t talk.” I responded, lips curling up in an almost panicked sort of grin, baffled and a little amazed by this discovery. I placed a hand on my hip and pointed at her, eyebrows raised. “Also, correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t you also female?”

She narrowed her eyes at me. _“Hmph. I suppose that isn’t incorrect... Still, you must be from a very strange land if this sort of magic surprises you.”_

“Ehh… you can say that.” I gave a shrug, not in the mood to get into specifics.

_“Anyhow, what business do you have here in this classroom? You’re not a third-year.”_

“Um, n-no… I’m not.” This felt really weird. “I’m actually looking for someone.”

_“I see. Well, if he’s in this class, then he should be out in the sports field. They have flying lessons today.”_

Huh. I guess I would be finding him in the outdoor classes after all. “I-I see. Um, thank you. It was nice meeting you.”

It almost looked like she smiled for a moment, but the frown from before quickly returned. _“Of course. In a place like this, that’s overrun by such abhorrent men, we women can only stick together. Do take care now, and please be sure not to let any of them bother you. Some of those foolish males can be quite brutish. It’s rather distasteful, if you ask me.”_

I smiled at that, amused. Although very prim and proper, and not someone I would have found myself interacting with by choice, I did find enjoy the conversation. She was quite the sassy portrait lady. “All right, I’ll try not to. Have a nice day, ma’am!”

_“Farewell.”_

Waving at her as I left, I found myself once again focusing on just how _out of place_ I was in this world. There was so much I still didn’t know. About magic, about its history, about the people and monsters that existed. I was just fumbling about, tripping over my own two feet, failing to keep up no matter how many times I picked myself up after falling.

I was hoping there wouldn’t be too many more surprises, but it was clear that was a fool’s hope.

Talking portraits, and now flying lessons…? What did that even mean- _flying_ lessons?

Were they chucking students up into the air like they were freaking canon balls, telling them to use their magic to float? That would be pretty irresponsible, although knowing the coach… maybe not too unexpected. Granted, they could be doing the old fashioned story book way- placing them on broomsticks. That would be kind of cool, even if brooms might not be very comfortable.

“Hmm…”

I let out a groan, brain utterly exhausted.

“I have no idea of anything, anymore… I give up.”

My only real hope was that Coach Vargas would be alright with me stopping by. He really liked my enthusiasm for cheering the students on, and liked having his picture taken even more. He knew I didn’t have classes for the rest of the day, so this has to work. Crowley even told him about my supposed duty to take pictures of students. It should be fine.

I can do this.

Taking deep breaths to calm myself as I walked down the stairs to leave the main building, I started power-walking my way to the sports field. I was a little out of breath by the time I arrived, but that was fine. I had made it. I just needed to locate the man I was looking for and… and…

“Whoa.”

My thought process came to a complete halt as I stumbled into the field, looking up at the sky to see maybe twenty or so people darting about on what was _actually_ broomsticks. One in particular seemed to be especially skilled, swerving about the sky at an incredible speed, and even looping every now and then. I watched, jaw slightly agape, fumbling for the ghost camera without looking. I didn’t think they would really be using brooms, but holy frick if that wasn’t cool.

I had tear my gaze away for just second to mess with the controls, making sure I had done everything correctly before I could pull the lens up to take a picture, but then… the student was gone. At least, I couldn’t see him doing any fancy moves anymore.

“Where did…? Aww…” I lowered the camera, disappointed, completely oblivious to the gust of wind behind me. “So much for that…”

“Is something the matter, child of man?”

Okay. I admit it, I actually screeched this time. “U- _Uwaaah!”_

Arms flailing, balance failing, and my feet stumbling as I tried to whirl around to see the person talking, I found myself falling hard on my rear with a flinch. The camera fell from my grasp, smacking against my hip, and blinking a few times as I tried to recover from the sudden scare I looked up, eyes growing wide and face flaring red.

“Wh-Wha… uh… hi, hello! Um,” I awkwardly cleared my throat, flashing a two-fingered wave and grinning nervously, “fancy seeing you here, Mr. Horns! You, uh, come to this place often?”

Holy shit. He was breathtaking enough in the normal school uniform, but now he had to be even more attractive in his gym class uniform? So unfair; my poor heart can’t handle this. Only adding to his charm was the fact that he was sitting so _casually_ on the broomstick, four feet off the ground, one long leg tossed over the other with his long slender fingers curled around the handle, his track suit halfway unzipped and showing off the skin tight turtleneck he was wearing.

You could see the outline of his chest and muscles very clearly, as the fabric clung to his skin, and unlike some other students his track suit had short sleeves, giving way to reveal his rather toned arms which were so _cruelly_ hidden by the tight sleeves of his turtleneck. Said sleeves went all the way down to his knuckles and wrapped around his thumb, showing off his nails which, while both beautifully manicured and trimmed, were also painted black.

Mr. Horns raised an eyebrow at me, chartreuse eyes glowing through brown eye-make up and even darker eyeliner. “This _is_ my class.”

Friiick, his voice was still as deep and sultry as ever.

“O-Oh, is it?” My voice cracked a bit as I tried to feign ignorance, stammering like a fool. “That’s… That’s interesting. Um, were… were you the one who was, um…”

I swallowed thickly, awkwardly pointing up at the sky.

“You know, darting around earlier? Doing all sorts of fancy loops and stuff?”

“Perhaps.” His expression was hard to read. His chartreuse eyes narrowed slightly and he frowned, long black hair flowing to the side from a small gust of wind caused by the many students flying in the air. “Why? ...Did it frighten you?”

“What?” I gave him a weird look at that question, slowly pushing myself up onto my knees and eventually standing, brushing the dirt off my clothes. “N-No? I just… I mean, I thought it looked… really cool. I didn’t know flying was a thing you guys could do. I mean, I didn’t really like magic a whole lot when I first came here, but I’ve been getting a better opinion of it the past few days, and you were…”

I hesitated, realizing very quickly how odd this conversation must be to him. I ducked my head and turned away, face and ears a strong shade of red, my hand resting on the back of my neck as I tried to hide my flustered expression with my arm, worrying my bottom lip when I felt it start to tremble. This was so not my area of expertise.

“I just thought… that you were… amazing. I-I didn’t even realize it was you _up there_ until now, but… yeah.”

Gods, I can’t do this. Someone just strike me down. Taking a shaky breath, I tried to recollect my composure and whirled around, picking up the ghost camera and holding it up for some kind of excuse.

“A-Anyway! I definitely had no idea this was your class! I was just here to take some pictures of students, because that’s what the headmaster told me to do! I mean, I-I do need to talk to you, but that can wait until it’s over. Right? I-I don’t want to bother you while you’re in the middle of lessons, so…”

“That’s fine.”

“Yeah! Wait, what-?”

I looked at him in alarm, having not anticipated that response. I watched as he slid off his broomstick with ease, the object somehow still floating in the air, and I froze in place when he walked over, stopping in front of me with his arms crossed over his chest. I could smell something almost akin to cinnamon wafting from his form, though why that was I wasn’t sure. Either way, it only left me more of a flustered mess than what I already was.

Mr. Horns stared down at me, a mischievous smirk playing on his charcoal colored lips, eyes flashing almost dangerously. “Speak, little human. You have a lot to explain, and even more to apologize for. You made me _wait_ quite a long time, only for you to never show. Depending on your answer, I may be merciful… or perhaps…”

He raised a hand to his chin, chuckling darkly and sending chills down my spine, staring at me with such a sadistic expression my knees almost went weak.

“I may just punish you instead…?”

Oh, _please_ do.

No! No, wait, frick, agh, brain- stop it! Ugh, what is with this stupid effect he has on me? I hate it. I swear, it wasn’t until I came here to this stupid world that my thoughts started acting up like this. My mind used to be so innocent, and now it keeps heading straight for the gutter.

“S-So, um, first things first,” I began, resisting the urge to take a step back, instead waving my hands about frantically as I tried to defend myself and fix this misunderstanding, “I didn’t forget! I swear! I was thinking about you the entire time and about how to explain the decisive match, but then…”

I faltered, flashes of ink and hate and tears coming to mind, and I lowered my head with a cringe. 

“Then… everything just… went wrong.”

The smirk on his face slowly fell, something more serious taking its place, and he folded his hand back under his arm, watching as I grew quiet.

“You… probably won’t believe me, or maybe you will because of all the rumors, but… after my friends lost the match, some insults were thrown and… the dorm leader Overblotted.” I brought a hand up, sliding my fingers into my bangs and brushing my hair, a strained grin on my face as I found myself inevitably recalling the memories, eyes watering a bit as the fear tried to form. “I-It… It was _insane._ He started… He started cutting off everyone’s heads and sealing their magic, a-and then he tried to skewer my friend and I with a tree, and then he transformed and actually _hit me_ with a tree…”

My eyebrows furrowed as I inhaled sharply, a hand shooting over to rest against my abdomen. My fingers pulled at the shirt, digging into the fabric.

“There was…” I shook my head, trying to ignore the thought of how much blood there was, and looked back up at the man I was talking to with mournful eyes. “There was a _lot_ that went wrong.”

Taking a step closer, I held my hands up, brown eyes staring deep into his own- hoping and praying with all my might that he would understand.

“I didn’t break the promise because I forgot! I-I broke it because…” I looked down again, biting my lip and lowering my hands, grabbing at my fingers. A sigh escaped my lips. “...I broke it because I did something reckless, and ended up unconscious in the infirmary for several days.”

My eyes squeezed shut, and I slowly moved my arms to hug myself, terrified of his reaction.

“I-I’m sorry. I’m _really,_ reallysorry…”

Please don’t hate me. Please don’t reject this friendship before it could ever really start. I’m telling the truth. I didn’t want to make you wait. I was really looking forward to seeing you again. This was all because I was a big idiot who didn’t know what else to do, and couldn’t work well under pressure. I had been panicking during the battle, and calming the dorm leader was the only thing I could think of to help.

I didn’t want to see him absorbed by that ink monster. He was a good person deep inside; he just spent so long shutting his real self down that when the way of life that was forced upon him had been questioned, he snapped. He couldn’t take the stress anymore.

“I-I understand… if…” I forced myself to look at up him, tears actually falling at this point as the more I spoke the more it became harder to hold them back. “...if you don’t wanna talk to me anymore, or… if you hate me. But I _swear_ to you that I _never_ forgot. I didn’t break it because I wanted to. I-I just… I just didn’t want Riddle to die. I’m sorry…”

He stared down at me for a moment. His expression had gone deep into heavy thought, making it next to impossible to know what he was thinking, and the fear of him hating me clawed at my heart. I sniffled, biting hard on my lip as I waited for a response, of some kind of dismissal or spiteful wave of hand.

Something that would tell me this was over, and that I would never see this person again.

When he finally moved, uncrossing his arms and instead placing a hand on his hip, I think I was close to falling over again- feeling a bit dizzy when his lips curled up into what was _definitely_ a half-smile and not a glare, relief rushing over me like a tidal wave and nearly knocking me down with its force. “Very well.” He said. “Just this once, I’ll forgive you.”

“Y… You will?” I breathed, blinking a few times, making sure I hadn't misheard. “You’re not… angry?”

A smirk spread across his face at this, a hand raising to his chin with his index finger draped almost playfully across his charcoal lips. His eyelashes fluttered as he looked down at me, chartreuse eyes seeming a bit brighter in color than usual. “Do you _wish_ to see me angry?”

“...N-No!” I hurriedly waved my hands and shook my head. “No, no, no! Definitely not! Happy Mr. Horns is best Mr. Horns! Please and thank you!”

“...Pfft.” His shoulders started to shake and tilted his head back, soft chuckles turning into heavily amused laughter. “Fuah ha ha ha! You truly are a strange human, Eleanora Quince.”

Damn it. I felt my face heat up again, a strange tingle flowing across my skin when he used my name. It was certainly nice hearing his laugh, though- something I still found absolutely beautiful. A part of me wondered if rejection would have been better after all, for then these stupid feelings would finally go away.

Pouting a little at the light-hearted insult sent my way, I mumbled, “I mean… you’re not _wrong.”_

He let out a pleased little sigh, calming down and showcasing his very distracting fangs with a small amused smirk. I then tried to snap myself out of my stupor, realizing now was my chance to make up for the past mistake. I looked up at him, a large beaming smile spreading across my face.

“So! To make up for this “strange” human’s behavior, would you like to come over again? When are you free? Do you have any plans tonight?”

“...I don’t have any prior engagements.” He informed, rather surprised at the sudden questions. The dragon fae thought about it for a moment. “If you had asked me any later, I might have had to decline. That aside, how do I know if you’re actually going to appear this time? Why should I trust you, little human, when you've already failed me once?”

Mr. Horns raised an eyebrow at me, clearing testing me. I tensed, only to feel myself overflow with determination a second after. Taking another step forward, leaving us only one foot away from each other, I looked up at him, a fierce grin on my lips. I slammed a fist into my palm, mimicking the expression I saw my friends wear quite often.

“Because I’ll fight anyone who gets in my way!" I boldly declared. "And if I still don’t make it, then… well, you can curse me yourself!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cater: "Don't talk to Malleus!" 
> 
> Eleanora: "Okay." 
> 
> Also Eleanora: talks to Malleus. 
> 
> Next chapter SHOULD be heavily Malleus, and then we'll be able to start doing a proper transition from August to October, including Riddle, Ace, and El's birthdays. Hopefully. We'll see how things turn out. XD Anyway, what did you guys think? Divus and Poma appear to be a first name basis, which is interesting... and we finally got to meet a talking portrait! I didn't include the one from the prologue, so I really wanted to add one in here to kinda fix that. Also Mr. Horns~~~! Jump scaring El like that, how rude. XD 
> 
> The super cute thing I mentioned should be next chapter, though I need to actually word stuff properly at the beginning to make it flow right... hrm... well, here's to hoping. 
> 
> Thank you for reading, and have a wonderful/day night wherever you are! ❤️ I hope you guys enjoyed this one.


	31. A Second Chance

Mr. Horns stared at me. He then closed his eyes and shook his head, a hand over his mouth as he muffled the next amused chuckle that came out. “That’s a dangerous statement to make, Eleanora Quince, but very well.”

A gust of wind blew by then, a couple of students flying over and above us, and in the background I could heard the couch shouting at them- telling them to put more muscle into their work, but my attention was solely on the dragon faerie in front of me. I was completely enraptured by this man, breath hitching in my throat when he leaned down closer to my height.

Because of the close proximity and the height difference I found myself bending backwards, intimidated and flustered beyond reason yet unable to bring myself to step away from him. I struggled to breathe, hearting pounding within my chest and only causing my poor lungs to act up, my head starting to throb as a dizziness formed.

This person really wasn’t good for me, because _holy frick-!_ I felt so dazed with his scent flooding my senses, his glimmering chartreuse eyes staring deep into my brown ones.

His lips curling up into an infuriatingly attractive smirk, I found myself fighting to keep balance, desperate not to fall over and humiliate myself even more than I already have in front of him. “I’ll hold you to that.”

“Draconia!” Coach Vargas suddenly shouted, blowing his whistle and startling me, causing me to actually stumble back and fall onto the ground. “Get back on the broom or run two hundred laps after school!”

I blinked, wheezing a little, and looked up at the man in front of me in confusion before turning to stare at the rest of the field, surprised to see several more students on the grass. I think some o them fell off their broomsticks. Mr. Horns folded his arms over his chest, a displeased look crossing his face momentarily, and he watched as I slowly got up on my knees, observing his classmates closely.

“Draconia...?” I mumbled, furrowing my brows.

The wheels in my head slowly turned, cogs struggling to put the puzzle pieces together.

“As in, like, Malleus Draconia?” My eyes went wide, and then I squinted- trying to make out the features on the other students. None of them seemed very princely. “Cater did say he was in this class… but which one is he? Hey, Mr. Horns, do you know…”

I turned back to look at the person I had been talking to, but he wasn’t in front of me anymore. I blinked. The dragon fae had retreated to the broomstick, legs on either side of the handle. He appeared to be in deep thought, eyebrows furrowed just slightly. It was probably just my imagination, but I swear I could almost _feel_ the magic coming off of his form- as if reacting to his change of mood.

“Mr. Horns?”

I stood, brushing my hands off my pants legs, and then hesitantly made my way over. I reached up, resting a hand over the pair of his that were gripping the broomstick tightly, trying to simultaneously catch his attention and offer some form of comfort, while grabbing the handle of the broom with my other. I tilted my head, lips falling into a concerned frown.

“Hey, what’s wrong? Do you not like Malleus Draconia or something?”

The second the coach had mentioned him, he started pouting like this. I watched as Mr. Horns stared down at me, an unreadable emotion in his eyes, his face almost completely blank and impossible read. I tried not to shift my feet too much, wondering if I was overstepping boundaries or crossing some sort of line by doing this, as I was all too aware I was touching his hands again.

Gods, I really had to be this obvious, didn’t I? Lame.

“Is…” I hesitated. “Is it because he’s some kind of prince or… do you guys just not get along with each other in general? I’ve heard a lot of things about him, but I don’t really know if they’re true or not, so…”

“...And you would listen to my opinion then, should I tell you?” The dragon fae spoke, as if challenging me. There was no change in his expression, yet I did feel the way his hands tensed beneath mine.

I paused for a moment, thinking about my answer, and then shrugged. “I mean, I would assume you actually _know_ the guy, considering you’re in the same class. It would also kinda depend on _what_ you told me. A friend’s enemy is my enemy, I guess, and the friend of my friend is also my friend. Uh…”

I flashed an awkward grin.

“Does that make sense? From everything I’ve been told, he actually kinda reminds me of you- what with being super powerful and all that, but like if you told me _why_ you did or didn’t like him I would listen. I’d still like to meet the person myself and form my own opinion, but I would keep your words and feelings in mind while talking to him.”

For a second, I thought I said the wrong thing. He was searching for something- I could tell- in my words, my voice, and in my eyes. Whether he found it or not I wasn’t entirely certain, but his shoulders relaxed and the darkness from his expression went away, the magic aura around him decreasing in intensity.

Mr. Horns slipped a hand out from under mine, palm extended towards me. “You’ve never experienced flying before, have you?” He asked, completely changing the subject. “Would you care to find out?”

“W-Wait, you mean, like…” The heat returned to my face as the weight of his question hit me. “...get on the broom with you?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Unless you know of any other method that will allow a magicless little human such as yourself to fly.”

“O-Okay, but like…”

I awkwardly released the handle and pulled away from him, curling my hands close to my chest. I glanced at the broom and then up at him, uncertain and awkward and scared. I remembered all too vividly the last time I went sailing through the air, and it was not a pleasant experience at all.

“I-I’m… not too fond of heights. Well, not heights in general, but more of just falling to my death from them. I-It kinda comes with the package of being short and clumsy, and after being _literally sent flying_ by a tree the other day, the fear is k-kinda… way worse now, so…”

I cleared my throat, really hating myself right now. This was such a great opportunity to spend more time with him, and I was going to have to decline like a coward.

“As much as I would _love_ to, I… I don’t know if… that’s a good idea…”

Gods, this was awful. I worried my bottom lip, extremely disappointed yet also terrified to go up into the air.

“I’m sorry…”

“...Do you believe I will drop you?”

“Huh?” I blinked, looking up at in surprise.

He seemed displeased. “I will not let you fall, little human, so do not doubt my abilities.”

“Th-This has nothing to do with your abilities, I just-” Seeing his stare made me falter, and I glanced at the broomstick one last time before taking a deep breath and sighing, giving in. I didn’t have the strength to argue, especially when he says it like that. “-oh, fine… you win.”

He’s lucky he’s so damn pretty. There’s no way he’d be this persuasive otherwise, right? Right. I hesitated before reaching out to take his outstretched hand.

I was just about to question how I was going to get up there when he gave an abrupt tug on my arm, a shocking amount of strength causing me to let out a yelp as my feet left the ground without warning. I wasn’t even sure what had happened until I was sitting sideways on the broomstick, practically in his lap, clinging to his unzipped track suit as he kept one arm around my back, his hand still holding mine.

Oh.

_Oh my gods._

Okay. Uh, wow. This is… really close. I think I just died a little on the inside. No, actually, you know what? This is fine. I am totally okay with this. I brought this upon myself for even agreeing to do this with him.

“Are you alright?” Mr. Horns asked, lips curled up in amusement. “I apologize if I pulled too hard. I’m not… used to interacting with humans, or with other people for that matter.”

My heart slammed against my ribcage and I choked, voice cracking when I tried to speak. I tried not to focus too much on the fact that he had an arm wrapped around me and that I was literally inches from his face, one of my hands against his chest. I could _feel_ the muscle beneath his shirt, and that only made me feel warmer and more tingly inside.

“N-No, no, you’re good. Um,” Frick, frick, frick, “a-are you okay with, uh, holding onto me while we fly? I… I don’t trust myself to not fall over the side.”

He nodded, and I took that chance to release his track suit, my movements stiff as I turned around so my legs could dangle on either side of the broom. I carefully grabbed onto the handle, mentally telling myself to calm down and that this was merely a friendship thing. There was no need to get so excited or freaked out.

Once I had finally managed to somewhat relax, I noticed that I couldn’t feel any warmth radiating from his body. His hand had also been quite cold when I touched it earlier, too. Was it because he was a dragon fae? Is he naturally cold-blooded?

I wasn’t able to ask or think much further than that, because a hand suddenly slid across my stomach and pulled me back, the broom starting to rise up off the ground. My heart leapt into my throat and I froze, not sure what I should focus on or if I could even concentrate at all. I was all too aware of the man behind me, who was basically holding me to his chest, but my eyes were also glued to the ground.

The ground that was slowly getting farther and farther away from us, our feet dangling freely in the air. A panicked noise slipped out from my lips and I leaned back, feeling the tears start to form in my eyes, and I was vaguely aware of my head bumping into a shoulder when that happened. We were at least a solid thirty or forty feet up off the ground.

“W… We’re… really high…”

Holy shit, we’re gonna die. Nope. No. I change my mind. I began to shake my head, eyes squeezing shut.

“I-I don’t like this, I don’t-”

“Breathe.” He said, hold around my waist tightening just a bit. “You are safe with me, child of man. I will not let you fall.”

He says that, but calming down is easier said that done.

“To think you’d be more scared of heights than of me…” A chuckle vibrated through his body, and I could feel him shake a bit as he laughed. He was so close I could almost feel his breath on my ear, only sending more waves of shock and pleasure down my spine. This man was seriously not good for my heart. “You truly are a strange human.”

I swallowed down the lump in my throat and I dared to look over my shoulder- where my eyes widened and I quickly turned away, face so warm it was burning. I stared down at the ground, ignoring the heart that was pounding with my chest and roaring in my ears. It was so freaking hot up here- it felt like the sun was trying to melt me with its rays.

At least, that was what I told myself... as I didn’t want to acknowledge the things this person made me feel. Especially when he was so close. I wondered how good his ears worked as a dragon fae, and if he could hear how crazy my heart was beating right now.

“I… Is that so?” I wheezed, responding to his comment. “Is… um, is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

I heard him hum thoughtfully from behind me.

He leaned over to the side, and I could see out of the corner of my eyes the smirk he sent my way. “Which would you prefer it to be? I would rather not give it a label, though if I must say… I suppose it would be a “good” thing. There are not many I am able to converse with as easily as with you.”

Oh. Well, don’t I feel special?

A small gasp escape my lips when the broom suddenly moved forwards, and I found myself leaning back towards Mr. Horns, even more panicked. It was going a lot faster than I had anticipated it would, but definitely not as fast as it had been when I first showed up at the sports field and he was by himself.

I could almost imagine the amused look on his face when he felt me grab onto his wrist with one hand, the man using his magic to fly us through the sky, occasionally swerving to avoid other students and even the random bird. When we started going down towards the ground, still moving with impressive speed and only seeming to accelerate more, my eyes went wide and I freaked, turning to bury my face in his arm with a frightened squeak.

Though I couldn’t see it, I did feel the broom shift upwards- and because of the angle I slid closer to the dragon fae again. He was laughing; I could hear it, and as much as I loved the sound I knew he was doing it because he was entertained by my fear. Sadistic jerk. Nervously peering out and glancing around us when we started to slow down, I began to relax again, but just enough to know that I probably wasn’t going to die.

His arm around my waist still had me as a fluttering, dizzy mess of a human being.

“Whoa…” Avoiding looking at the ground, I instead focused on the world around us- at the sky and clouds and all the birds that were passing by. I looked up at Mr. Horns, a bright smile finally spreading across my lips. “This is incredible!”

He blinked once, then twice, and then his mouth pulled into a smirk. The dragon fae watched as I observed the sky, brown eyes following after the movements of the birds.

Sometime during this my hand moved from his wrist to his hand, a little startled by the cold of his skin yet not at all bothered by it. So much time has passed today so it was currently afternoon, which meant there was some red coloring in the sky, but not so much that you could mistake it for evening.

From below, now that I was feeling a bit daring, I could see the forest just outside the botanical garden, and several of the school buildings. In the far distance, I think I even saw a body of water. Were we on an island? Interesting.

“It’s… beautiful.”

Mr. Horns stared at me for another minute, before turning his gaze away to see what exactly I was looking at it. “Is it? I never paid it much thought before; flying isn’t exactly something new to someone such as myself.”

I leaned the side, head back and resting against his shoulder so I could get a look at his face. Even at this angle he was still infuriatingly gorgeous. “Because you’re so skilled with magic? Don’t you ever stop to take in the scenery every now and then?”

“Depending on where I’m at.” He informed, looking down and meeting my stare. “I generally avoid public areas so as to not frighten those that visit them. I prefer visiting and walking around more quiet places; such as that dorm you live in, or other such ruins. There’s a lot of history to be found there, should you think to look. The ancient architecture is quite magnificent and something to behold.”

“Ah, yeah, that’s true.” I blinked. “I’m not fond of spiders or bugs or cobwebs, but I love all the artwork that people put into the older buildings. Especially when there are, like, stone murals or something like that. They have some pretty cool statues, too, occasionally, I think.”

That caught his attention. His eyes narrowed. “I do hope you’re not confusing grotesques with gargoyles, child of man. They are two completely different things.”

“...I’m aware?” I made a face, giving him a weird look. “Grotesques are literally just statues. They’re there to look pretty- or, well, scary, I guess, depending on the place. I actually had this conversation with someone the other day; we were walking into Diasomnia when-”

I cringed, realizing I had just given myself away. Frick. Damn me and my big, talkative mouth.

“Okay, so, I need to tell you something.” I leaned forward, taking a deep breath and glancing up at him anxiously.

He stared at me, expression serious. “What is it?”

I bit my lip and looked down, gripping his hand a bit tighter.

“I… I lied. I did know this was your class. I went to Diasomia the other day to try to find you, but I panicked because I wasn’t sure if it was against the rules or not for me to head into another dorm. I also know a lot of people hate me and would probably try to hurt me, and since I didn’t have my friends with me for protection I knew that if someone _did_ attack I would be screwed.”

Mr. Horns said nothing, patiently waiting for me to finish the story, which honestly only made me more nervous as he wasn’t saying anything and I couldn’t read his thoughts at all.

“So I was sort of pacing outside the mirror talking to myself, and I thought aloud, “Oh, what if I mention that I know Lilia”? And then someone showed up behind me. His name was Silver, and he’s actually Lilia’s son, so he was super surprised, and when I explained I was trying to find Lilia to ask him a question he walked with me through the mirror to the dorm. There I pointed out the gargoyles.”

I lowered my head and squeezed my eyes shut, wondering if _this_ would be what made him hate me, guilt written all over my features.

“It was… It was Lilia who told me what your class was.” I made myself confess. “I’m sorry. I just- I didn’t know your real name, so I had no idea how to find you to talk to you, so I asked if he knew anybody with horns and he told me what class you were in.”

...Silence.

Terrified, I forced myself to meet his gaze. I felt so small, looking up at him like this. “A… Are you upset? I wasn’t lying about the part of having to take pictures of students; the headmaster really did tell me to do that! I just… wasn’t sure how you would feel if I told you about the… class thing… so I panicked.”

After a moment of silence, he shook his head at me. “I already knew.”

I blinked, stunned. “...What?”

“I knew you came to the dorm.” Mr. Horns informed. “Lilia had told me about what you did, so I had expected to see you approach me sometime today. It seems my assumption was correct.”

“O-Oh… so… you’re okay with that? You don’t hate me?”

“I don’t. If anything…” He paused. “...you coming clean about the lie, and informing me of the truth is something I appreciate.”

Well, then. That… was not was I was expecting. I nodded stiffly, unsure of how to react to that. I looked forward again, releasing my hold on him and grabbing the broomstick, staring at the ground below us with uncertain eyes. “That’s… That’s good… then. Okay. Yay! I-I was… honestly really scared of you hating me.”

“...You’re scared of my hating you, yet you’re not scared of _me?”_

Mr. Horns let that sink in for a moment. Then he started laughing, something of which actually seemed to startle several students who were flying by. They all looked in this direction with frightened eyes and quickly took off, either in the opposite direction or towards the ground. Admittedly, I didn’t pay much attention to them- too busy pouting at the man before me.

“Really?” I asked, making a face. “I was seriously worried! I didn’t want our friendship to end before it could even start. That would suck! I want to know more about you, and I can’t do that if you hate me!”

He shook his head, smirk gone and instead replaced with an actual _genuine_ smile, nothing but pure mirth in his glittering chartreuse eyes. “I… haha… ahh, you really are something else.” The dragon fae grinned down at me, and my face and heart warmed.

“W-Well, yeah…” I stammered, stubbornly turning my head away, knowing I would end up staring at him the rest of the broom ride if I didn’t. There was also something in his voice when he said that; something that was _strangely_ affectionate _,_ and only made me feel more embarrassed and all too aware of how weird my behavior was. I tried to make myself seem confident, boldly declaring, “I _am_ from another world, after all!”

“Indeed.”

Heart racing, I turned my head to get one last look at his face- but when a whistle blew out from the ground and then the coach was shouting, telling everyone that class was going to be over in five minutes and that everyone should head back to the ground. I tensed, feeling the hand on my stomach push me closer to the dragon fae, my eyes growing wide as the broom started to tip downwards.

“Ah, hold on. We’re heading back to the field now.”

He said that as a warning, but it didn’t stop me from letting out a small noise and burying my face in the arm closest to me. There was a large gust of wind as we descended, and sometime during it I actually found myself grabbing onto him for stability, fearful of falling or crashing, and I think he let out another amused chuckle when that happened, but after about thirty or so seconds the broom came to a stop.

I waited a moment, not really processing we weren’t moving, until I slowly opened my eyes and looked around, realizing where we were. “O-Oh…” We landed. At least, he did as my feet weren’t anywhere near to touching the ground. I guess the ride was over.

...Wait, why am I disappointed!? That was terrifying!

Now, how do I get off of this thing without making a fool of myself? I tossed a leg over so both of them were dangling off the end, but the ground was still a good three to four feet below me. I gripped the broom handles, hating this constant anxiety, yet before I could even attempt to muster up the courage to jump for it a familiar hand was being outstretched towards me.

I looked up in alarm, seeing Mr. Horns standing rather close. His expression had fallen back into one of neutrality, but his eyes were… strangely soft as they looked at me. Awkwardly accepting the support, he reached out with his other hand and grasped my arm, helping me jumping down.

It… was rather gentlemanly of him, actually.

Now if only I didn’t freaking stumble afterwards like an idiot and crash into him… _ugh._ I hate myself. Why am I like this? I hurriedly backed away from him and waved my hands in the air, fervently apologizing. “S-Sorry! I didn’t mean-”

“I thought that was you, little beansprout!”

I cringed at the voice. Couch Vargas was making his way over, whistle falling from his mouth and resting against his thick chest. He looked down at me curiously, eyebrows raised, hands on his hips.

“Did you come here to take pictures of the class? I saw you up there with-”

“Beansprout.” Mr. Horns said, not wasting a beat as he cut the teacher off. Vargas blinked.

“What? Uh, yes, that’s what… I said? Was she helping you work your muscles?”

Damn it. I really hoped my thoughts didn’t show on my face, because my brain went in the _wrong_ direction with that. Mr. Horns, however, either had an extremely innocent mind or just knew not to take things out of context, for he raised a hand to his chin and chuckled, several students taking multiple steps away when he did that.

“If that’s what you want to call it.”

I decided to take a risk, looking up at the dragon fae and leaning over, poking his arm with a grin. Arms crossed now, he looked down at me with a raised brow, clearly curious about what I was doing. “I think you’re more a bean _stalk_ than a bean _sprout_ , if you know what I mean.”

He stared, observing my wide toothy grin, before shaking his head at me with the smallest of smirks. “I believe _that_ is up to the teacher.”

Right! Vargas! Wait, why was he looking at us like that? What’s that face supposed to mean? He looked so baffled for some reason, like something unexpected or inexplicable had just happened. Realizing I needed to act quick before he spilled the truth on Mr. Horns’ real name, I hurriedly fumbled with the camera and raised it up.

“Say cheese!” A flash. A few seconds later, the photo came printing out and I grinned, shaking it off before holding it up the coach. “Tada~ lookin’ strong as ever, Coach! Oh! I should probably get going.”

I’d rather get changed before the rest of the students start heading to the locker room.

I began to sidestep and march backwards, waving at Mr. Horns excitedly. “I’ll see you later! Remember, we promised that if I don’t show up, you can curse me! Also- I hope you like muffins! They’re blueberry! Bye~!”

He gave an… intrigued wave of the hand, and then I took off. By the time I made it to the locker rooms my face was burning and my heart was pumping, a high-pitch squeal escaping my lips as I smacked my face.

“Nope, nope, nope! It’s fine! Stop it! Aghhhhh- that actually happened~!”

Holy shit. Oh my gods. I breathed, stumbling over to my dress and button-up, feeling more than a bit dizzy.

“Okay, okay… calm down. We’re good. We did the thing. Everything’s done. Just gotta… get changed and…”  
  


There’s still time for me to join my friends in their their last two classes. I promised I would help them study, after all, and to do that I actually need to learn the material.

Yes. Perfect. That sounds like a good plan.

Shoving my gym clothes in the locker, it took everything in my power not to skip out of the room. I had just gotten outside when I saw the students from class 3-D heading this way, and I ignored their strange looks and whispers as I headed up the hill to get to the main path. I waved at my new dragon fae friend when I passed him again and sped up, knowing that if I didn’t leave I would act like a buffoon.

Gods, today was weird. It started out great, then kinda went a bit downhill, but then it picked up again! So overall it was really good.

Ace and Deuce were a little surprised when they saw me head their way in the halls, and the blue-haired teen looked visibly relieved when he saw I was unharmed. Ace quickly put me in a headlock, causing me to yelp, and he rubbed his knuckles against my skull as he dragged me with them to their next class, Grim sitting on Deuce’s shoulder while he rolled his eyes at our behavior.

“You got lucky this time!” The ginger declared, releasing me so we could sit down. “You never know when something might happen.”

“And if something _does_ happen that person is gonna get stabbed.” I retorted, holding my pencil up- shoving it back and forth through the air to prove my point. “I’m not gonna make it easy for ‘em. If I’m going down, they’re going down with me.”

Deuce tilted his head and let out a sigh. “I’d rather something _didn’t_ happen to you…”

“I still don’t understand you guys.” Grim said, folding his arms across his furry chest.

That… was probably a good thing.

I shook my head and grinned, petting the cat monster that was sitting in my lap. When the teacher came in and starting talking, handing out worksheets and explaining some uses of basic and more practical magic, I found myself just as lost as the other classes. Which… sucked, but I still tried to take some notes.

In the end I was pretty much zoned out, unable to keep up, and I just accompanied the boys to their classes to keep them company. By the time we made it to the Hall of Mirrors to meet up with the others, I had a slight headache. It went away fairly quickly, though.

“You actually made it!” Cater exclaimed. He grinned, flashing me a thumbs up. “Good job, Ellie! We were seriously worried for a minute there.”

Riddle sighed. “Honestly, you shouldn’t talk to such suspicious sounding people…”

“Hey!” I protested, placing my hands on my hips and frowning at him. The redhead blinked, not used to such a reaction from me. “I’ll have you know he was super nice to me! He not only accepted my apology, but he also took me flying on his broomstick! Because... flying is apparently something people can do at this school, too. I guess.”

I scrunched my nose up.

“I dunno. I also just found out that portraits can talk.”

Ace blinked. “We have one in our classroom… ah, right, I almost forgot!” He smacked his forehead. “You weren’t there on the days he spoke up… of course you wouldn’t know.”

“Still,” Trey said, placing a hand on Riddle’s shoulder and giving Ace a warning look before smiling at me, “it’s good you’re back in one piece. Riddle, Cater, and I are going to head back to the Heartslabyul dorm. What about you, Grim, and these two troublemakers?”

“I-It’s not like we cause trouble on purpose!” Deuce stammered, face flushing red.

Ace ruffled his hair, thinking about it. “Hrm… I dunno. How good you feelin’ right now, El?”

“I’m okay. Tired, but okay.”

He stared at me, narrowing his eyes suspiciously, but when he saw I wasn’t lying he shrugged and faced the others. “I guess we’ll come with… while she rests at her dorm. You won’t let us escape clean up, anyway, will you, Trey?” He scowled, seeing the green-haired upperclassman laugh.

“Sorry, sorry. But we can’t have the revenge party until everything is cleaned up. It should only take a few more days.”

Deuce leaned his head to the side, sighing. “I’m exhausted… but okay. I’ll help with the debris this time. Ace, you can keep painting.”

“Blegh- fine, fine, I see how it is! Abandoning me. Traitor.”

I snorted. “So many traitors in this group, apparently. Me and Trey, and now Deuce? It’s never ending.”

Riddle smiled a little at that. “So it seems. Well, I suppose we shall see you tomorrow, Eleanora. Do take care.”

“Bye-bye, Ellie!” Cater grinned and waved, while Trey pushed up his glasses with a small smirk, walking off with the two men.

“See ya.”

“Ugh, _fine.”_ Ace whined, dragging his feet behind him as he walked. “See you later, El.”

“Later.” Deuce said with a smile, walking up to the mirror after the ginger. “Stay safe! And don’t cause her any trouble, Grim!”

The cat monster hissed, and I carefully maneuvered my arms to make sure he didn’t try to escape and jump after the blue-haired teen. “Why you-! I’ll have you know the Great Grim does what he wants! Don’t order me around!”

Ah, such children. Granted, I can act like one myself at times so I really shouldn’t be talking… but still. I scratched behind his ear, trying to calm him down as I turned around to start walking out of the hall. “Easy, there, buddy. Don’t go scorching anyone now.”

Grim huffed in response, leaning against his chest and crossing his arms. “I hate those jerks sometimes…”

“Eh, I’m sure they feel the same. Besides, you can’t like a person _all_ the time. There are things you gotta disagree with.”

It’s why Ace and I argue all the time, and why he and Deuce are constantly bickering. If not for the incident that brought us all together at the mines, none of us would have ever even thought about interacting with each other, nonetheless try to become friends. It was an incredible thing that happened.

Terrifying, yeah, but incredible.

It was a miracle we were alive. If I had actually managed to stop Grim that first day… who knows what we would be doing now? We certainly wouldn’t be students, and we definitely wouldn’t have friends. We would be alone.

I took my time walking to the dorm as I reflected on the past, Grim curled around my shoulders with his tail casually draped over my chest. I felt so relaxed. I’ve done everything I needed to do today, and I had even been forgiven for breaking the promise. There was nothing more to stress out about, except for the homework I had yet to do.

Should I try cleaning up inside the dorm… or should I just lay a blanket or something over the creaky old porch steps for when Mr. Horns comes over? The freaking mattress fort is still in the middle of the lounge, so maybe I should stick with hanging outside. Besides, all the dust and mold messes with my lungs. Might as well avoid it whenever I can.

Yeah… that sounds like a plan. Perfect.

But until then… maybe I can clean up a little bit? I have so much time to waste, after all.

Upon arriving at the dorm, Grim hopped off my shoulder to go do… whatever it was he did, and I pulled my mask on. The ghosts greeted us happily, and as I got to work trying to set the furniture back up and dust off some things… well, I got worn out fairly quickly. Being carried around all the time back when my curse was in full-force really worsened my stamina. I wheezed, hands on my waist, staring at the mess of mattresses and pillows and sheets.

There was no way I could move all that.

I stumbled back, collapsing onto the couch, and leaned my head back with a tired sigh. “Few more hours… until night fall… almost there…”

I just had to calm down, be patient, and wait. Which, admittedly, was easier said than done.

…

Malleus had intended on playing with the human a bit longer while she made her apology, to continue on with his petty half-hearted revenge scheme. Yet the moment she started to speak, to try and explain what went wrong, and the tears began to form in her eyes… he had already made up his mind to forgive her.

His silence before actually doing so was him contemplating what this sensation was, the dragon fae trying to to understand the odd twist in his chest upon seeing her so frightened. She was already so small and fragile; crying the way she did only made her appear more breakable than what she already was. He couldn’t help but try to make that joke when she asked if he was angry, to tease her into feeling better.

Lilia has always said that his jokes weren’t easy to understand… and he knows he’s scared more than a few humans with them by accident… but this one seemed to know what he was doing. She recognized his attempt at humor. Why else would she react in such a silly manner?

Then, almost immediately afterwards, she invited him over again.

Such a bold little human… even granting him permission to curse her if she should fail to show. Does she not realize the power she keeps giving him? What it means to befriend a fae, nonetheless a dragon? Foolish mortal, she truly will get herself killed at this rate. Bravery is one thing, but this is another.

She’s lucky he’s so merciful.

Malleus tugged at his school blazer, deciding it would be best to approach her in this uniform so as to not give away his true identity. It had been a close call earlier back at the sports field, but she appeared to be completely oblivious that it was he who the coach had been talking to.

Her reaction had been quite a surprise, and perhaps a bit pleasant when she started talking to him about… well… himself.

Such an entertaining human, she was. She had no idea he was the Malleus Draconia she was inquiring about. Did he hate himself? Did he have a problem with being “some kind of prince”? The dragon fae began to shake at the thought, chuckling into his fist as he recalled the memory.

Eleanora Quince truly was unique, wasn’t she? Maybe that’s why he offered to let her fly with him.

Should she have known who he was, she might have ran away in terror… or maybe she would have realized just how _much_ of an honor it was to ride with him. The little human had felt even smaller when sat in front of him, his long arm wrapped around her thin frame. When she would hide her face against him to avoid looking at the ground, and would slide back against his broad chest whenever they flew upwards, it almost felt like he could engulf her with his very being.

As if he could just spread his large wings and hide her from the world… so only he could bask in her presence.

Malleus blinked and shook his head, dismissing the strange thought as he fixed his tie. He certainly wasn’t that cruel. He was merely unused to having another presence around him, someone who _wasn’t_ a person he grew up with or helped raise. Someone who wasn’t a servant or a bodyguard, and who treated him like he was just another person.

It was making his draconic instincts act up, telling him to hoard this rare treasure he found before it disappears from his grasp. Thankfully, he was stronger than that- able to fight the urge within him easily. He doesn’t want to scare away his new… friend, now does he?

_Friend._

Such a strange word. He’s always wanted to have a close companion by his side, yet it always seemed so far out of his reach. No matter how hard he tried in the past people would always be scared of him, fearful of his appearance and his magic. It had gotten to the point where he had completely given up on it.

But then she appeared.

And suddenly… he started to feel a bit less alone.

If things kept going as well as this, then maybe he would have a close confidant soon- after all, even the Witch of Thorns herself had someone beside her. They were mentioned in every textbook. He remembered the stories of her and her crow-companion very well, and was actually rather envious of their closeness.

Lilia even told him some stories of her while he was growing up, as she was Malleus’ grandmother and someone he should look up to. Someone he should strive to be like.

And, as luck would have it, the little human he spoke to seemed to have a fondness for ancient architecture and gargoyles as well. Perhaps he should ask if she would like to join the Gargoyle Research Society… It doesn’t have many, well- it doesn’t have _any_ members aside from himself thus far, so she would be extremely welcome. Ah, but he’s getting ahead of himself.

There’s still the meeting with her tonight.

“Malleus?”

The dragon fae turned to look at Lilia, the shorter fae looking up at him curiosity. Malleus frowned, expression falling into something more neutral. “What is it? I’m in the midst of something. You should know better than to barge in without announcing yourself.”

“My apologies.” Lilia brought a hand to his chin, staring at the taller man thoughtfully. He raised an eyebrow, a grin tugging at the corner of his lips. “You seem to be in a good mood. Might I ask why you haven’t changed out of your school uniform?”

He then blinked.

“Actually… are you _straightening_ your tie right now? Malleus, are you planning on going somewhere again? Sebek will throw a fit.”

“He’ll be fine.” The dragon fae turned away, stepping back from the mirror inside his room. “I’m not a child. I’m more than capable of protecting myself. Besides, there’s an… important meeting I have today. The person isn’t capable of causing harm to anyone, nonetheless myself, so there’s no need to fret.”

Lilia sighed, hanging his head to the side. “That isn’t the issue here…”

The ancient inhaled slowly and then stepped forward, floating up and dashing in front of him when he tried to avoid his eyes. Lilia frowned. Crossing his arms over his chest, he stared intently at Malleus. When he failed to find what he wanted to see, the ancient fae gave up and shrugged his hands in the air, plopping dramatically onto the purple sofa at the foot of taller man’s bed.

“Ah, well, as long as you don’t do anything foolish or shirk your responsibilities, I don’t mind. You’re a very intelligent kid- er… man, Malleus. Sometimes it feels like you’re growing up a bit _too_ quickly, but that’s just this old man being nostalgic.”

Malleus stared down at him, catching the way he almost referred to him as a child.

Lilia smiled softly, something sad and unknowablein his old eyes. “Don’t forget your promise to me, alright? If your mind is ever unsettled or your emotions become unbalanced…”

“I’ll come talk to you.” Malleus finished.

Lilia relaxed at that. “Yes… exactly. Though it may not be by blood, we are still family.”

He rose up out of his seat, floating towards the dragon fae and outstretching his arms, wrapping them around the taller man’s shoulders. Malleus paused for a moment, as if unsure how to react, before carefully resting a hand against his back.

“I told you that your new friend would worry… but the truth of the matter is, I’m also always worrying about you. I still remember the day you were born- crying with egg shell pieces all over your face. You’ve matured so much since then, but there’s also so much you still need to learn. Whatever it is you’re about to do, I’m certain it will help you.”

He pulled back, hands on the dragon fae’s arms, giving them a light squeeze as he flashed an encouraging smile. His magenta-red eyes looked a bit misty.

“I’ll keep Sebek and Silver busy so they won’t go after and bother you.”

“...Thank you, Lilia.”

The ancient fae smiled at him one last time before disappearing in a flash of lights, giving Malleus one last moment to recollect his thoughts. Once he had done so, he glanced at his reflection- making sure everything was in place and that nothing would be too out-of-the-ordinary and accidentally give away his identity- and then his body started to glow. Within seconds he had teleported from his room to the outside of the abandoned dorm, the skies black with night and fireflies dancing brightly around him.

Sitting on the rickety old porch, a pale blue sheet laid across the wood to prevent any splinters from hurting them, with a container of muffins and two glasses of iced water, was Eleanora Quince. She was dressed in her school uniform this time, hunched over to try and keep the exposed parts of her legs warm, and when she saw him she jolted- warm brown eyes widening, a smile so blinding lighting up her entire face.

“Mr. Horns~!” She greeted excitedly, waving him over. “I made it this time, see? I told you I would!”

“So it would seem.” He mused, feeling the unusual curl of his lips as he approached, walking over and watching as she extended her arms out in a grand gesture to show that she was here. “You really did make it. Congratulations, little human; I won’t be cursing you tonight after all.”

She stuck her tongue out at him playfully- an action many wouldn’t even dare try in fear of losing said tongue- before patting the spot on the blanket next to her. “I win~ also, check it! I brought the blueberry muffins I mentioned! My friend baked them for me while I was unconscious, but I haven’t had the chance to actually eat them yet so I figured I’d share with you. He's a pretty talented baker, so you _know_ they're gonna taste awesome.”

Eleanora leaned to the side as he carefully sat down next to her, staring at him suspiciously.

“You… do eat blueberry muffins, don’t you? I know I didn’t really give you a lot of time to answer before, but…”

He reached into the tupperware, carefully picking up the delicate treat. The brunette watched his every movement, fair cheeks turning the same shade of pink as they always did when around him, though the majority of it was hidden by the bandages she wore on her face.

“I’m not too particularly stingy over what it is I eat,” Malleus informed the girl, watching as she sat up when he answered, a small twinge of amusement flashing in his eyes, “but yes. There is only one thing I’d like to avoid eating in this life, and that…”

He gave a dramatic pause, charcoal-colored lips tilting up in a smirk when he saw her lean closer, waiting anxiously for his response.

“...is Lilia’s cooking.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A whole new world~
> 
> Okay, but jokes aside- how was the fluff? I know I tend to lean on the angst side of things more often than not, buuuut the fluff was good, right? It's been a while since I wrote something cute, but I gave it my best shot! We also got some more of Lilia being the best bat dad ever, pulling at them heartstrings, and a sweet little hug between him and Malleus. (I almost called this chapter "Whole New World" for the joke but I held back, sorry not sorry) 
> 
> Ya'll might recognize some of that conversation from (I think) Cater's Halloween story? Where a bunch of Magicam Monsters were bullying Malleus and he almost incinerated them. (Like seriously they were just plain obnoxious. I don't blame him for wanting to smite them, lol) But anyway, I put it in here since it felt like it would fit and since I won't really be including that part in the second arc- as it features around Cater and El isn't supposed to know Mal's real name yet. 
> 
> Also! The new twst story is up. I was gonna wait til be got to Leona to start writing it, but I had prologue ideas in my brain and... kinda typed it up already. It's super angsty and dark and gruesome though, as it's a Re:Zero au, so brace yourselves. 
> 
> Anyway, what'd you guys think? 😊 As always, thanks for reading and have an awesome day/night where ever you are! ❤️


	32. The Fated Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing and posting this from my phone is SUPER weird, so Imma apologize now if things don’t flow well or seem different from how I usually write. 😅 Hopefully you guys still enjoy this. Happy New Years!

It was cold. It was cold and it was freezing, and I was sitting there on the rickety old porch for at least two hours waiting for Mr. Horns to show up. 

I decided to keep my school uniform on as it was thicker than my shredded ceremonial one, but seeing as it was in fact a dress it did little to keep the exposed part of my legs warm, my boots only reaching up to just below my knees. 

My thighs were covered in goosebumps and my fingers were close to numb, and as I waited for my new dragon faerie friend to arrive I remained hunched over, attempting to protect myself from the low temperature. I shivered and sneezed, and grimaced whenever the world decided it was going to be a jerk and send a breeze my way. 

It was bad enough I was anxious over whether or not he would actually show up, and what we would even talk about if he did, but it just _had_ to be pitch dark out and forty degrees. 

I was honestly debating running back inside and grabbing a blanket for myself when I finally saw him arrive, brilliantly colored fireflies illuminating the area, and it was at that moment- seeing him turn around to look at me- that it all felt worth it. 

Every shiver, every sneeze, every moment of irritation whenever the wind blew. 

If it meant seeing the genuinely pleased and surprised look in his eyes, and the gentle upwards curl of his charcoal-colored lips… I would do it again. I would suffer another hour, maybe even two, in this deep darkness of night time.

In my panic and fluster, I might have overreacted a bit- hurriedly standing and waving at him, tossing in the air a joke about my curse comment from before, and gesturing for him to come over and sit next to me. I was shaking, though at this point I didn’t know if it was because of the cold or if it was just my nerves. 

I offered him a muffin, more than relieved when he accepted it, and I watched as he moved to take a bite before pausing- informing me of something I had _never_ expected to hear or learn about during my short time here. 

“L… Lilia…” My brows furrowed, wondering if I heard correctly. “Lilia can’t cook?” 

“Correct.” 

“But… wait…” I stared up at him, dumbfounded, yet when I saw he was being completely serious I started to involuntarily giggle, raising a hand up to my lips as I tried to process this. I held my other hand up, wheezing, eyes full of mirth. “H-He said… He said that he used to feed Silver! A-And that whenever he was sick as a little kid, he would feel better after eating his cooking!” 

“That was a lie.” Mr. Horns stated bluntly. There was absolutely no remorse in his voice, the man firmly believing what he said and that it was better for me to know. “His food is akin to poison- no, it’s worse than that. Poison would at least be merciful...” 

Oh my gods. 

The man shook his head, as if recalling an unpleasant experience. He turned and fixed me with an expression of utmost seriousness, not a single hint of humor to be found in his tale- but I still couldn’t help myself from laughing. 

“Silver only pretended to be feeling better to avoid having to stomach anymore of that… concoction Lilia had created.” Mr. Horns recalled grimly. “I myself had fallen victim to it once… and it is an ordeal I shall never forget.” 

“Wh-What happened!? Dude, are you okay?” I reached over and rested a hand on his arm, struggling to cease my laughter as this was clearly not a light subject, but it was super difficult. “H-How did you survive!? No, scratch that, how did _Silver_ survive!? He’s not even a fae!” 

Mr. Horns closed his eyes, something almost disturbed crossing his usually composed expression. “I’m… fairly certain that child had gained a… resistance of sorts to it, having grown up being fed such monstrosities. As for myself- I had been lucky enough to be born with certain abilities, though it is _not_ an experience I wish to repeat.” 

“Holy frick, Lilia, _why!?_ Oh my gods!” I shouldn’t laugh. I really shouldn’t be laughing. I wheezed a little, coughing into my sleeve as I tried to calm down. Unfortunately, it was hard to hide the amusement in my voice. “Well, uh, all things considered, I’m really glad you survived!” 

Seeing him turn to look at me again, I flashed a grin- smiling brightly as I held one of my thumbs up. 

“If you hadn’t, I never would have met you! And, um... honestly,” I pulled my hand away, awkwardly lacing my fingers together in my lap, shifting in place a bit as I ran my thumbs over my scarred knuckles, suddenly feeling really awkward as my face warmed up, “I... really like talking to you. So… yeah.”

I beamed up at him, praying he didn’t notice how weird my behavior was. 

“Thanks for living!” 

Mr. Horns merely stared down at me with slightly widened eyes, his eyebrows raised. He said nothing in response to my words or even to my small confession. His silence was probably actually something I should be grateful about, though I would be lying if I said a part of me wasn’t disappointed at the lack of a response. 

The man simply watched as I tilted my head at him, brown irises shimmering with curiosity. “So… speaking of those two… I actually have a question.” 

He totally just gave me some new information about him, as well as the other two people in his dorm that I know. That meant they must have grown up together or something, right? It was the only thing that made sense. 

The dragon faerie waited patiently for me to continue, and seeing this I leaned towards him- feeling a bit more confident, my right palm pressed against the blanket-covered porch. 

“What exactly led to you eating his cooking? Did he corner you at the dorm when you both came here or… did you just visit his house a lot? Are you guys related? Are you friends? What’s the story there?” 

“Lilia…” Mr. Horns paused, clearly thinking about how to phrase his answer so as to not give anything about his identity away. I pouted a little, but couldn’t find it in me to be upset. I was just happy to be learning more about him. “Lilia works for my family, you could say, so while I grew up he was always there. In a sense… he actually helped to raise me.” 

Oh. 

I blinked, surprised by that. “Really? Is that why he’s here then? I thought it was just to spend more time with Silver- seeing as he’s human and all, not to mention his son, but… is he actually here to just watch over the both of you?” 

“...Yes. It was the only way I could get the rest of the… household to agree to my attending this college.” 

He raised the muffin up to his lips, opening his mouth, and I watched as he took a bite- mesmerized by the way his fangs dug into the pastry. He was careful not to drop any crumbs and chewed slowly, and when his eyes glanced at me out of the corner of his vision I quickly turned away. 

Reaching into the container I grabbed a muffin of my own and took a bite, refusing to be awkward and startled at getting caught for gazing at him. 

The second the flavor of the muffin reached my tastebuds, I paused. 

I had played up Trey’s baking skill earlier, but… the pastry really _was_ quite delicious. The next time I saw him, I would have to give Trey a hug. 

Not only did he do a fantastic job on these muffins, he’s also sort of acting as my wingman- not that he even realizes it. Gods, I feel so flustered now that I was caught. I mean, I’m pretty relaxed compared to how I was back in the sports field, what with the hilarious information that I was given doing wonders for my nerves, but I’m still a bit anxious. 

Daring to look up at him again, I swallowed the bit of muffin I was chewing and tilted my head. “So… are you from a noble family or something?” 

Mr. Horns stopped right before taking another bite, eyes sliding over to look at me again. I observed his reaction, realizing I had either hit pretty close or was right on the mark with that comment. 

“You said Lilia worked for your family, so that…” I narrowed my eyes, brows furrowing as I went into thought. Worrying my bottom lip, I tilted my head. “...would have to make you _somewhat_ wealthy, right? At least, from more money than the average person.”

I wasn’t sure why I said “noble” instead of simply asking if he was a rich kid. It probably had something to do with this being another world, or maybe because he was immortal and therefore probably came from an ancient family. I knew very little about the class system in this place. 

Magic was a thing, so what about kingdoms? Kings and queens? There was a prince in this school, and if Silver worked for him he probably came from the fae society. It was the only way the connections to Lilia made sense. 

“That or he was just a babysitter for you while you grew up,” I continued, “and he adopted Silver sometime after, but based on your phrasing I’m guessing there’s more to it. Not to mention that Silver and Sebek had called him _Lord_ Lilia, which means if he serves your family you would have to be of an equal if not higher status.” 

Oho, I definitely had his attention now. His body had turned so he was almost completely facing me at this point. One leg was crossed over the other, his expression that of neutrality- making it hard to tell what he was thinking. He had masked his emotions again. 

But since he had done that… I’m pretty sure I had guessed right. It was like some sort of defense mechanism for him. Gods, even when he looks like he could be contemplating my murder he’s still so freaking handsome. Just kill me now, sir; you’re already close to slaying me with your stare and voice alone. 

A wide grin spread across my lips, a bit sassy and confident in nature, and I pointed at him, my eyebrows raised. “I called it, didn’t I? You’re totally a rich kid. I mean, it makes sense if you think about it, considering the way you act, and _maybe_ the way you speak… but your formality could just be a thing to do with your age.” 

“...My age?” 

“Yeah, y’know,” I said, smirking, lowering my finger and propping my hand against my cheek, “because you’re immortal?”

A part of me wondered if I was taking this detective thing too far, but it wasn’t like he would answer my questions any other way. 

“Night Raven College… is also a super prestigious school, right? So I feel like the majority of the people who got in were either super smart or super wealthy, all the while being good with magic. And, in all honesty, you kinda fit into all three categories. Especially the magic part. This is just my guess though; I don’t actually know how the system works. So feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.” 

“...Hmph.” He narrowed his eyes at me. “You truly are quite arrogant for a magicless human.” 

I snorted at that. Flashing him a smile and sitting up straight, I poked my cheek with my index finger. “You think so? I thought I was quite charming. But, seriously, Mr. Horns, you’re very…you know...” 

I lowered my hand, smile dropping as I looked at him and gestured to his entire being. For a split second, I thought I saw his eyes flash with amusement. 

“Elegant…?” 

The muffin he was eating was left discarded on the plastic container’s lid, the dragon fae placing one hand on his knee and the other on the porch. He raised an eyebrow at me. “You don’t sound very certain of that.” 

“W-Well, that’s… I mean…” Frick. I felt my face heat up and I turned away, shivering a little at another breeze and grabbing at my arms, hugging myself in an attempt to get warm. “You _are_ very elegant. It’s just… one of the many ways to describe you, I guess.” 

“Oh?” 

Damn it. Now he was really curious. A charcoal-colored smirk curled up on his lips, the man curling an index finger against his chin. I’ve noticed now that when he wasn’t amused or angry, his emotions tended to show in his eyes more often than not. 

“Do tell what the others are.” 

...Crap. 

I walked right into this. A trap of my own design. 

Judging by his expression, I think this man found himself entertained by how I constantly made myself cringe. Ugh. Why do I allow myself to speak? I only get myself into embarrassing situations like this whenever I’m with this person. 

A little panicked, I frantically waved a hand back-and-forth, hoping I could somehow find a way to divert this conversation into something else. “I-I don’t mean anything bad by it! But I… also don’t really know you that well, so I could be totally wrong about all this! It’s just… the impression I got from the first two times we met! Er, well, three now, actually, and if you count this one it would be four…” 

Yup. Yeah. He’s definitely enjoying this. 

Freaking sadist. He was sitting there so patiently, waiting for me to blabber on about any and all observations I might have made about him. I brought a hand up to my face, turning away and praying that he couldn’t see how red my face was. 

“I-It’s just… that…” Damn it, heart, calm down. You’re going to give me an asthma attack at this rate with how much you’re making my lungs work. “I… um.” 

I cleared my throat, glancing at him out of the corner of my eyes.

Gods, just kill me. Please. I beg of you, sir. 

I can’t do this. 

“You’re… really nice. Where I’m from… chivalry is pretty much dead, so… you being so nice was really surprising. In a good way, I mean! It’s not very often you meet a gentleman or a guy who’s just a genuinely good person, and while you _can_ be pretty intimidating when you want to be- I think that’s just part of your charm.”

I was hiding my face with my arm again like a coward, hand sliding to rest on the back of my neck as I hunched down, my other arm resting across my lap. 

“You’re also rather friendly, not to mention witty, as well as kind.” 

The man blinked, appearing mildly surprised by that. Taking a shaky breath, I forced myself to sit up, shivering a little at another breeze. Worrying my bottom lip, I turned to face him completely, trying to make myself appear or at least pretend to be confident. 

“You can also be pretty arrogant at times yourself, but I’m actually a hundred and ten percent okay with that. And, like, I get it- you’re gorgeous _and_ powerful, so you kinda have the right to be super hecking confident, and confidence is great! You’re not even a jerk about it. You don’t rub it in other people’s faces that you’re powerful. You don’t brag about it. You just kinda smirk and go “yeah, I can do this thing” and that’s awesome!” 

It… almost sounds like I’m professing my feelings for him. Damn it. I hated how passionate I sounded, and even more so the way I instinctively leaned towards him. 

“You don’t even mock others for not being able to do the same! At least… from what I’ve seen, anyway.” 

I frowned, watching as his expression fell back into something neutral, the surprise wearing off. The dragon fae was simply intrigued, especially after the way my voice lowered and I started to speak in a more serious tone. 

Memories of rumors and glares and spiteful whispers flashed through my mind, only strengthening the way I already felt about this. 

“You could have made fun of me dozens of times for not having magic,” I told him, eyebrows furrowing, “but you didn’t.”

There was a momentary pause where I tried to collect my thoughts and calm my breathing. 

“When I…” My hands fell to my lap and I grabbed at my skirt, eyebrows furrowing as I recalled a conversation from earlier today. “When I told my friends that I was going to be looking for you, they thought you sounded super shady because you didn’t tell me your name... and they wanted me to avoid you. They were… scared of you doing something to me. But... if you _were_ shady, or the person you claim everyone is afraid of, you would have done something by now. Something that would have made me hate you.”

“...” 

“Only you didn’t.” I lifted my head back up, brown eyes staring intently into chartreuse. “Instead, you continue to be someone who I want to know more about. Someone I want to befriend and talk to. I’m… I’m sure you have your faults like every other person, and… that’s perfectly fine. I want to know about those, too.” 

I flashed him an awkward smile, trying to lighten the atmosphere. 

“You’ve already seen a lot of mine, after all. You’re friendly and formal and elegant, and so pretty it’s actually kinda frustrating, but also arrogant and kind and not afraid to speak up. You also just kinda seem to _ooze_ nobility, I guess, or at least… what I sort of imagine nobility to be like.”

He was just staring at me now. Did I go too far?

A little panicked, I joked, “Even when you’re just sitting down you’re all different levels of graceful! D… Does that make sense?” 

I faltered, anxious over his lack of reaction. 

“Sorry, I just- _again_ , I don’t really know you that well, so that’s just my first few impressions of you that I got when we talked before. Are… Are you upset?” 

Mr. Horns stared at me for a very long moment- so long, I’m certain several minutes have ticked by. He narrowed his eyes. “...It almost sounds as if you’re trying to _analyze_ me, child of man.” 

Aw, frick, I think he’s angry. Should I try to defend myself or be blatantly honest about it? With his personality, it was sort of hard to tell. A little scared of him hating me after everything I just said, I scratched the uninjured part of my cheek. 

“M-Maybe… just a little bit?” I flashed an awkward grin, praying my anxiety wasn’t too obvious. “I don’t… really know you that well yet, and… I’d rather be safe than sorry…” 

“So you are suspicious of my intentions, then?” 

“No!” 

Freaking- ugh. Damn it. I held my hands up in front of me, hurriedly waving them around. 

“M-My friends are, but I’m not! Like I said, if you were going to try something you would’ve done it already! It’s just- uh…” 

I hesitated, not sure what I should say. He looked so serious, though. If I didn’t tell him something, would he leave? Would he never talk to me again? I don’t want that. I curled my hands close to my chest, shrinking down as if to hide from this uncomfortable turn of conversation. 

“It’s just what I do. I overthink… a lot.”

He stared at me with an inquiring gaze, silently demanding an explanation. I worried my bottom lip, glancing up at him nervously. 

“D… Does it bother you? I’m just… used to being replaced and having people mad at me, so it’s… something I do out of reaction to that? To kinda prepare myself in case it seems like it’s gonna happen again. It’s weird. I’m… I’m sorry.”

Upon seeing his continued lack of response, I cringed and lowered my head.

“Sometimes I don’t know when to shut up…” 

Mr. Horns finally spoke. “It doesn’t.”

Huh? My head snapped up and I blinked, wondering if I heard him correctly. 

“...Bother me, that is.” He clarified. “I must admit that I find it a little _audacious_ of you to try and understand me, considering the circumstances of our meeting and who I am, but I’ll let it slide.” 

Wait, what? 

I watched as he picked up his discarded muffin, the dragon faerie turning and observing the pastry closely, before glancing at me out of the corner of his eyes- a hint of mischief and curiosity in his chartreuse irises. 

“Of course, that’s only _if_ you don’t let what you learn bother you. Do you understand, child of man? I won’t forgive you if you run away.” 

I could have sworn that my heart had leapt off a cliff earlier, yet now I could feel it body slamming my ribcage, the organ running a marathon within my chest. I watched with bated breath, lungs on the verge of giving out while a dizziness washed over me, as the man took another careful bite of the muffin. 

_Holy shit._

Everything was still okay. He wasn’t upset. Carefully finishing the muffin, as if to draw out the tension and make the anticipation near unbearable, he wiped at the corner of his lips with his pinky finger and reached down to lift up his drink, taking a sip of the glass of water I had laid out for him.

I found myself really glad I took it upon myself to wash those dishes earlier. Thank you, ghost trio, for pointing them out to me. If not for that, I would never have been able to witness this beautiful sight. 

“Thank you for that.” Mr. Horns said, seemingly refreshed. He smirked, setting the glass down and facing me- an elbow propped up on a knee with his chin on his palm. “Tea is more preferable… but I appreciate the consideration you put into this little “meeting” despite your limited resources.” 

“O-Oh, uh, yeah; of course.” That was random. My brows furrowed and I tilted my head. I tucked that new tidbit of information in the back of my mind for future use. “Um, so- wait. Was I right? Are you nobility or something?” 

The small smirk faded and he sighed, expression shifting into one of complete seriousness. He finally realized he couldn’t escape my curiosity. 

Victory shall soon be mine! 

“You aren’t far off about where I come from,” The man admitted, closing his eyes as he went deep into thought, “I was born and raised within a wealthy household. There I learned proper etiquette befitting the place in society that I stand, and how to harness the magic so many fear.”

Ah. Okay. He doesn’t look very happy about that. I frowned, heart aching a little as I tried to imagine how hard a life it must be. 

He must have grown up with tons of expectations and responsibilities placed on his shoulders, and everyone apparently being scared of him must have been pretty lonely growing up. I don’t know exactly how different life is for faeries compared to humans, but to be thought of as a person so frightening that it made it difficult to have even a single conversation with someone...

Gods, I hated it. He deserved better. 

Mr. Horns blinked, eyes snapping open to look down at the hand I had placed ever-so-gently on his arm. His gaze then trailed to my face, where he saw me smiling warmly at him. 

“I don’t think it’s scary, though.” I said, hoping this would comfort him in _some_ way, shape, or form. “I thought…”

Calm down and breathe. Don’t lose your confidence now.

I grinned, beaming up at him as brightly as I could, ignoring the heat in my face. “I actually thought you looked really cool earlier! B-But I’ve already told you that, didn’t I?” 

Pulling my hand away quickly, I scratched the uninjured part of my cheek, laughing awkwardly. 

“Then again, I did almost die several times since coming here… so my opinion of “scary” is probably super jaded. I’ve even been making friends with my almost-murderers.” 

Mr. Horns shook his head at me, though instead of annoyed he was amused. It seems my comment worked to distract him after all. Perfect.

“You are truly a lucky little human, Eleanora Quince.” 

Another breeze blew by, this one somehow different from the rest. Warmer. 

The wind had his hair flowing around him just enough to take my breath away, leaving me close to faint as the brightly glowing fireflies only made his beautiful eyes stand out more in this darkness. A smile lit up on his charcoal-colored lips, his porcelain face illuminated by the moonlight. 

I was so stunned and enraptured by this moment- by his beauty and the second most genuine smile I had ever seen him wear- that I almost didn’t notice the large hand that cupped my right cheek, the man leaning over and resting his free palm on the porch beside my right hip. 

It was only because of the pure _shock_ of how cold his leather glove was that I snapped out of my stupor and realized what was happening. Yet, while I knew, I couldn’t find it in me to move. 

I was trapped. Immobile. Frozen to the spot. 

If the dragon decided to devour the foolish mortal that approached him, I would be too weak to stop it from happening. No. To be honest, I would have gladly welcomed it. 

I vaguely recall reading in mythology that one shouldn’t tempt or go near a dragon, though the memory was so long ago that the details were fuzzy. I wondered if the same logic could apply to a dragon faerie.

Gods, he was so close. I could drown in his scent alone. Is that cologne or-? No. If it was it would bother my lungs. It was almost like a burning candle, yet without the intensity that left me ill. Instead, it was alluring… only making me want more.

“You should be more careful.” 

His lips moved, his soft whisper reaching my ears and piercing deep into something within me, his words _\- his voice-_ seeming to resonate with my very soul. I swallowed thickly and had to remind myself to breathe, my legs pressing closer together as his gaze kept me rooted in place. 

“Your arrogance and your recklessness,” He began, sounding almost as if he were accusing me, “will be your downfall. Do you realize that, child of man?”

His thumb brushed against the bandage on my cheek and then he moved, standing up on one knee and leaning down so we were closer in height. Both his hands were cupping my cheeks now, a tingling sensation I couldn’t quite explain brushing over my skin. It wasn’t natural, that I knew.

And as a result my voice was still stuck in my throat, eyes wide as they stared into his. I was conscious of his every movement and every breath, and it was both nerve wracking and exciting at the same time. 

Another cold breeze blew by and I shuddered, leaning into his touch, not really aware of what I was doing.

His hair was long as it fell past his shoulders, the softness of it tickling the corners of my face. I had to crane my neck to look up at him, the angle awkward yet somehow only pulling me closer to him. I was terrified, yet also greatly looking forward to whatever was going to happen next. 

“Don’t be so willing to throw your life away.” He murmured. “Forcing yourself into my life like this…”

Mr. Horns shook his head, eyebrows furrowing as something _strange_ and _conflicted_ crossed his expression. His grip on my face tightened, and then his hands slid down to my shoulders. Every part he touched, despite his gloves being cold, ended up burning like a fire. 

“To me, losing someone like you… who doesn’t fear me at all…” He lifted his head up, frowning deeply as his eyes bore into mine. Our noses were almost touching, and I could feel his warm breath against my face. “...is an extremely frightening thought. Do not attempt to lose your life again.” 

He... says that as though I have a choice. 

Ignoring the warning bells in my head, the reason in me telling me that _this_ was definitely not a conversation a pair of friends or soon-to-be friends should have, I forced my trembling hands to reach up, placing them against his own.

Surprise flashed across his face momentarily, before his expression quickly turned into something neutral. He was watching now, observing me in the same way I observed him. 

“I can’t control that.” I said quietly, finally allowing the pure _sorrow_ of the curse situation to show upon my features, the weariness of everything I’ve been through clear as day for him to see. “I don’t want…”

A shaky inhale of oxygen. You could see a small cloud form in the air, caused by the cold outside temperature and my own warm breath. 

“I don’t want me to die either.” Hearing my voice crack, I gave a weak smile and tried to joke, “I quite like living, y’know.” 

“...At times, it doesn’t seem like it.” 

That startled me, especially with the cold, matter-of-fact way he had said it. Mr. Horns’ frown deepened. 

“Shall I take that as your permission then?” 

What? I looked at him in confusion, and blinked when he tightened his hold on my shoulders. His eyes were half-lidded, but were now glowing much brighter than before. 

“No matter how many times it’ll take, I’ll return. I won’t allow _it_ to claim you.” 

His voice lowered, sending chills down my spine and almost causing me to squeak when it got unexpectedly close to my ear. I was feeling all sorts of weird and tingly and warm- so much so I couldn’t even feel the biting cold of the wind anymore. 

“I’ll ensure that person’s demise.” 

Uh, okay? I am so confused right now, and even more flustered and heated. I can’t keep up with this weird conversation.

The dirtier part of my brain, which knew I was extremely inexperienced and even more repressed due to my years of avoiding relationships, was screaming at me to just grab his tie and pull him down, while the logical part was torn between having me pull away and informing him of something called _boundaries,_ or overall just having me stay still. 

It would be so easy, too… he’s so freaking close. 

Just one god damn kiss…. 

_No._

My first kiss, should it ever happen, was not going to be because I couldn’t control my freaking hormones around some ridiculously attractive dragon fae man whom I just met. It was going to be special. That’s how first kisses are supposed to be, right? 

Although, if I’m never going to enter a relationship, does it even matter…? I’d… like to know what it was like just once to… kiss… someone. 

Ugh, stop it! Stop! I hate this. I want to cry so bad right now. I don’t even know his real name and he’s making me question every decision I’ve ever made. 

“Wh…” My voice cracked and I had to make myself move, sitting up and sliding his hands off my shoulders, instead cradling them near my chest as I sat in front of him. He was seriously tall; I felt so small compared to him. “What person? Who are you talking about? I-I don’t get it.” 

I want him. I want him so much and I hate myself for it. I feel like the worst person alive. This wasn’t normal. 

Was it? 

Ace claimed that men were wolves. So why, in this situation, did it feel like the wolf was me? 

Mr. Horns shook his head with a chuckle. My grip on his hands tightened a little, and I questioned my sanity at that moment. I had half a mind to press a kiss to his fingers or even his palms, and it took every ounce of restraint not to follow through with it. 

“Do you truly want to know?” He asked me. His voice was as sultry as ever, and I knew if he asked for my soul I would willingly give it to him. “Even if knowing… might bring more harm than good?” 

Oh. That’s… a tough question. Also a good distraction.

I think there’s only one way to answer that, though. A wicked smirk spreading across my lips, I raised his hands up and pressed his cold gloved palms to my cheeks again- surprising him. 

I think the thing that surprised him most was the sheer confidence in my expression, the look I was wearing not at all resembling the timid or bubbly sweet smile he was used to seeing from me. 

“Puh- _lease._ Haven’t you met me?” I teased, staring up at him mischievously, eyelashes fluttering. My grin was so wide it almost felt like it was going to split my face. “I’m the disaster human, Eleanora Quince. My very _existence_ brings more harm than good.” 

“...Pff…” 

Hah? 

He turned his head away, shoulders shaking as he tried to hide his laughter. My eyes lit up when I saw I had succeeded in making him laugh again, and I watched with glee as he tilted his head back and just let it all out. 

“You ridiculous…!” He pulled a hand away, snickering into his fist. His chartreuse eyes were full of mirth as he looked down at me. “Do you not understand the weight of the words you say? Child of man, you have _saved_ others. You shine as bright as the sun, blinding those that reside within the darkness, and yet you have the nerve to claim you only bring destruction?”

“Um…” My face warmed again. I wasn’t entirely sure how to process that. “...Yes?”

I honestly couldn’t tell if he was complimenting me or not. Should I be flattered? Is he flirting? He tended to use poetic wording more often than not, so I was probably imagining it. Still, there was a part of me that hoped- as well as a part of me that dreaded it being so. 

I made my decision. I had a resolve. These feelings would follow me to the grave. 

So why…? 

Why is it so hard to remind myself of that when around him? What makes him so different? Shaking my head and pushing the thoughts away, I released his hand and pulled back, hunching over and hugging my frozen legs again. 

“A-Anyway, nothing good comes with having me around. I literally got cursed on the first day here.” 

“That’s not what happened.” 

I blinked, mouth open to retort, only to pause. I sat up straight and looked at him in confusion. Laughter and amusement gone, his expression was that of utmost seriousness. “Wh… What? How do you know?” 

Mr. Horns turned his head away, slowly lifting an arm, and I watched as a tiny firefly landed in his index finger. It was… breathtaking. The wings on the firefly’s back flickered and then it went flying away, bright chartreuse moving to meet soft brown. 

“You weren’t cursed upon arrival to this world.” He told me. “You’ve been cursed since before your birth.” 

“...O… Okay?” My eyebrows furrowed. A sense of unease spread through me, though not enough to rid the warmth that had long since settled after his arrival. “But how do you know that?” 

He smirked, curling a finger against his lips. “I wonder~? Have you not even noticed, little human?” 

“N-Noticed what?” 

“The rose in your mouth.” He stated, highly amused. “It’s retreated for now.” 

“O-Oh… Oh, that!” I relaxed slightly, relieved. I leaned down and hugged my legs again, trying to keep my knees warm. “Y-Yeah, I, um, I could tell from breathing. It… doesn’t hurt anymore.” 

I looked down, worrying my lip again. 

“It’s… confusing. I think it might have something to do with the Overblots, but then again I’m not really sure. It all started with dreams of Riddle as a child… and then evolved into the Queen of Hearts. Later, they kinda fused together, and after he transformed… it was _her_ . The ink monster had taken her shape, trying to absorb him and make him _become_ her. It was… terrifying.” 

I hugged myself tighter, chin resting on my arms. 

“All I could… really think about was that I _had_ to get him away from her. If I didn’t…” 

I inhaled sharply and sat up, shaking my head. I really didn’t want to think about it. Unfortunately, it was all that was coming to mind now. The burning smell of ink and magic, and the frightening red of his eyes. It was nothing at all like the sweet, if still a bit strict, boy I knew now. 

If I hadn’t acted so recklessly and done what I did, he might not be alive now. The ink monster might have been defeated, but what about the boy himself? 

There was no telling. 

Gazing at the man next to me, I frowned. “What do you think? I don’t really have a lot to go on, considering what little I actually know about the curse, but I think it makes sense. It started with him and then, after the battle, it went away.” 

“...I will not deny that it sounds as though it has something to do with Riddle Rosehearts, and perhaps any others who may Overblot in the future, however…” 

He stared down at me, eyes boring into mine with an intensity that left me frozen. 

“His defeat did not make the thorns retreat.” 

But… 

“If not that, then… what did…?” 

It was hard to speak. It was even harder to ask the question that was lingering in my mind. This man- he _knew_ something about it. Something he wasn’t telling me. 

“What caused it? How is the Overblot involved? What did you mean I was “cursed before my birth”? How do you even know? Lilia barely knew anything about the rose and he’s the sole reason I even learned it existed in the first place!” 

My voice got a bit louder with each question, almost panicked in nature, as I recalled all the terrifying events I’ve been through and the pain the curse had caused me so far. All the fear and anxiety, the nights I was scared to sleep in fear of having another dream or of just not waking up in general. 

How did _he_ know? _What_ did he know?

Which question was more important? 

Mr. Horns closed his eyes, folding his arms over his chest, and he let out a small sigh. “To be more exact, rather than say you were cursed since before your birth… it was your _name_ that was cursed.” 

I blinked once, then twice, and afterwards I could physically feel the color drain from my face. “My… My name?” 

“Yes.” 

Oh my gods. When? How? That doesn’t make any sense. I’ve been so careful. I never gave my name out to any faerie since coming to this world. 

Wait, he said it was before my birth, so… did my parents give my name away? Or maybe...

No. That makes even less sense. 

I raised a hand up to my forehead, a small headache forming as the cogs in my brain turned, trying desperately to figure out the meaning of all of this, my eyebrows furrowed. “H-How…? I don’t…” 

There’s no way. 

“Magic doesn’t… exist where I’m from…” 

“Precisely.” 

My gaze snapped up to meet his own. When I spoke, my voice was weak. “Wh… What?” 

Mr. Horns’ smirk only seemed to broaden. He stared down at me with an arrogance I couldn’t quite describe, as if pleased to know something I otherwise did not. He leaned over, fangs poking out from behind his charcoal-colored lips. 

A hand resting beside me, I resisted the urge to lean back. “I-I don’t… um…” 

It would be weird to bring up how close he is now, wouldn’t it? I feel like it would be. Trapped under his stare, unable to move, I could only listen as he spoke. 

“You’ve been cursed for a very long time, Eleanora Quince. Yet you were born in a world without magic, and only by entering this world _full_ of magic could the curse activate and spread.”

He reached a hand forward and I flinched, turning my head to the side to cough into my shoulder. This weather was a nightmare, but the dorm dust and mold was worse. Even more nightmarish than those, was the exercise this man was putting my heart and lungs through. I tensed when I felt his fingers rest along my throat. 

For a split second, I recalled the botanical garden and the hand that nearly strangled me to death, and I had to remind myself that the person I was with now wouldn’t do that. 

“The rose and it’s thorns… bloom with each memory you chase. Even the most minor semblance of it will bring you pain.” Suddenly, he gripped my chin- forcing me to look at him. His gaze was so intense, it felt like he was staring into my very soul. “It’s almost pitiable. Such a weak human as yourself…” 

He observed me for a long moment, something flickering in those eyes of his again. 

“Tell me- are you truly not afraid?”

“Of… Of you?”

No response. 

Mr. Horns simply sat there waiting for my answer, patient as could be. To me, his silence said everything, and the temptation to kiss him was stronger than ever before. I should probably be wary, considering he obviously knew more than he let on, but who cares? I was in too deep now anyway. 

Deciding to be a little dramatic, I tilted my head and sighed, grasping the hand that had hold of me. “Honestly… how many times do I have to say it?” 

Lacing my fingers with his, he watched- and I held our entwined hands up for him to see. I stared at him intently, a fire burning inside me.

“I’m _not_ scared. What else do you want me to do? I’ll hug you if you want me to. I give very good hugs.”

Maybe I could- _no._ Actually, screw it. Why not? 

He blinked, eyes widening when he saw me press my lips to the back of his hand, kissing his gloved knuckles gently. I kept eye contact, remaining completely still, and I noticed in pleasant surprise that he made no movement to retract his hand either. 

There was a moment of quiet, in which neither of us spoke. When it became too much, my anxiety started to spike and I panicked.

“W-Well? A… Are you convinced yet?” Any confidence I had previously faded, my face growing warm as I once again became flustered. I can’t believe I let myself do this. “I-Is there anything else I should do?”

“No, you’ve…” His fingers twitched and gripped my own, the man staring at our entwined hands. 

His eyelashes fluttered and he blinked, looking at me with unreadable eyes. His voice was soft and quiet, yet lowered in pitch just enough to give me chills. 

“You’ve done enough.” 

Oh. I’m… not sure how to feel about that. My heart was pounding so hard and fast, I could feel my lungs wheezing as they struggled to keep up. It was going to be crazy difficult calming down later. 

“Is… Is that a good thing or…?”

The rest of the words got caught in my throat. His lips curled up in that familiar infuriatingly attractive smirk. 

“Which would you prefer?” He inquired. 

His eyes, half lidded, bore into mine. The heat I felt was close to unbearable, and the desire only strengthened when his free hand rested over mine, the man leaning down just slightly so we were closer in height. 

“I wonder just how much I should actually tell you…” 

“A-About the curse?” 

Sir. You are literally killing me here. I came out here to have a good time and I am, on all fronts, feeling very attacked right now. Stop giving me mixed signals and messing with my heart. 

Clearing my throat, praying he couldn’t see how red my face was, I spoke up. “Wh-Who could have cursed my name? There’s no magic where I’m from, and I never gave my name to any… one…”

Oh no. Judging by his mischievous grin, I realized all too quickly that I _did_ in fact give my name away. I cringed, suddenly recalling our second meeting. I groaned and planted a palm to my face.

“Of _course_ I did.”

“I didn’t curse you.” He informed, as if that would make the fact that I gave my name to a faerie any better. “Although you did give me your name, it wasn’t the same name that was cursed.” 

“...Hah?” I was even more confused.

Mr. Horns chuckled at my baffled expression. He lowered our hands and I blinked, the dragon faerie pressing his fingers to his chest. “Who was it that you angered so deeply, little human? Whose heart broke so greatly that they wanted you to suffer for all eternity?”

“I-I don’t...” 

Lilia said something similar when we first met. He asked me who I angered. But this- breaking someone’s heart? Being made to suffer for all eternity? Why? I don’t understand. 

Damn it. This person had all the answers and he was going about telling me with riddles. I frowned and stood up on one knee, gripping his hand tightly.

“What are you _talking_ about?” I demanded. “Do you know who did it!?” 

I was frustrated- and in more ways than one. So it wasn’t all that surprising that I was losing my temper. He knew something, yet wasn’t telling me. And in telling me, he was doing so in a way that made it hard to understand. We were speaking in circles.

“Who cursed me? When?” 

Mr. Horns eyed my expression, pondering my words and his next course of action. “...For what reason should I tell you?” 

Seriously? Rude. I made a face, unimpressed with his way of teasing. “Hrmm~ I dunno.”

I pressed his hand in between both of mine, holding it close to me, and I leaned forward with a devilish smirk. He blinked, as if suddenly aware of just how small the distance between us was. 

“Maybe because you’re a super nice guy who likes to help out his adorable human friend? Who, might I add, isn’t scared of you and actually really enjoys being in your presence?” 

He laughed upon hearing that, amusement dripping in his voice. “Is that so?” 

“Yup. So come on. _Tell me~_ please?” I pouted for good measure. I can’t believe I was actually behaving like this. “If you do, I’ll make sure to save you if you ever Overblot! Granted, I’d still probably try to save you anyway... if Riddle was anything to go by. “

“That isn’t very convincing.” 

I sat back down, pouting even more. “I’ll owe you a favor then. Oh! I know!” I held an index finger up, grinning widely. “I’m great with advice! If you ever need help with something, o-or even need relationship advice; I’m your gal!”

I tilted my head, beaming as brightly as I could. I decided to ignore the horrible pang in my chest at the thought of him dating someone. More specifically, someone who wasn’t me. 

“Sound like a plan?” 

He shook his head at me, a small grin on his lips. “Such a strange one you are, child of man. I’m truly curious as to why one would wish to curse you.”

“Right?” I moved over and sat next to him, still grinning even as I released him. “Which is why you should totally tell me everything you know _regarding_ the curse, so I can figure out what’s going on! You wouldn’t want your new human friend to suddenly keel over, right?”

“I already told you.” He stated bluntly, frowning. “I won’t allow you to die.” 

“But you won’t tell me what you know?” I said, shoulder slumping, feeling both disappointed and a little betrayed. 

“I never said that.” 

I brightened immediately. “Then-!?” 

He folded his arms across his chest. “I merely wanted to see how far you would go to convince me to tell you.” 

...Jerk. 

Resting one of his feet against the staircase, the other leg crossed over his knee, the man raised a hand up and a small green flame appeared in his palm. I jolted a little from surprise, but didn’t flinch away. 

“Your name was cursed a _very_ long time ago.” He began. “Not the one you gave me, of course, as it’s now under my protection, but a previous name.” 

I furrowed my brows. “Protection?”

The green fire flickered brightly. Mr. Horns glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes before focusing on the spiral of flame. It rose up and took shape, and I looked on in surprise when I realized what it was spelling out. 

“This is your name. It’s untouched by any magic except my own, however-“ The letters jumbled, spiraling in a whirlwind of flame until only the first two letters remained. “-there is a trace of another when separated. It’s easy to assume that these two were a part of your previous name.”

“And it was… the previous name that was cursed?” 

He nodded. 

“H-How do I even have a previous name? I’ve only ever been... Eleanora…” 

Oh my gods. 

The way he was staring at me said numerous things, and I wasn’t actually sure if I wanted to believe what he was implying. I held my hands up, shaking my head fervently. “No, no, no! H-Hold on, hold up! A-Are you saying I had, like…a past life or something?”

That’s insane. 

But… this was a world full of magic. There were ghosts and faeries and monsters, and mirrors that can teleport people. For all I know, it could be possible. 

I can’t even keep up anymore. 

“Dude…” I pressed a hand to my forehead, baffled. My eyes were as wide as could be. “Is reincarnation seriously a thing? Wouldn’t the name be the same?” 

“In most cases.” He said. The flames vanished, dissipating into nothing as he curled his fingers into a fist. “Your previous life had the same name for centuries, possibly even for thousands of years. Each life was swallowed up by the curse. It was only when you managed to be reborn in a magicless world that your name changed- and with it, your form.”

My… form…? 

I squinted at him. Mr. Horns was unaffected by my stare. “So, does that mean I looked different or was I someone else entirely?” 

He raised a hand to his chin, closing his eyes as he thought about it. “There’s a strong possibility of either.” 

“How… do you know all this, anyway?” 

Mr. Horns paused. “Your name. I’ve learned many things about your curse through it, though not quite enough to say _who_ cast it or the exact reason as to _why_ that person harbored such a grudge. The only thing I can say firmly is that it was a faerie much like myself, with incredible magical power.” 

That’s… terrifying. Um, I… 

I blinked a few times, processing this and glancing to the side and then back up at him, the cogs in my brain working as best as they could to comprehend all this information. “S-So basically, what you’re saying is…”

Gods, this was so messed up.

“I was… I was a terrible person in a past life, who foolishly gave away my name to a super powerful fae, and that specific fae cursed me to repeatedly _die_ because of some grudge that was formed due to… to some act that I don’t even remember _committing?”_

He tilted his head, staring at me as I neared the verge of another breakdown, before giving me a small nod. “That’s what it appears to be, yes.” 

...I see. 

I let go of his hand and scooted back to the spot where I had been sitting previously, draping my arms over my legs as I hung my head, distressed and horrified. I could feel a sting in my eyes, dread weighing down on my shoulders, heart no longer fluttering as it instead plummeted hard into my stomach.

“S-So… that means… I can’t break the curse.”

I thought I just had to find the person. That maybe if I looked hard enough, or was nice enough, I could locate the caster and convince them to remove it. That I could apologize for whatever heinous act I committed that made them hate me. 

“O-Okay…” A few droplets splashed onto the wooden steps, and for a second I almost thought it was raining. I choked on my voice and raised my hands up to the back of my head, hunching over as I tangled my fingers hard into my hair. “Okay. Got it. That’s… That’s fine.”

Everyone dies eventually. That’s a fact. 

“I wasn’t even supposed to be here anyway, right?” 

My existence had no point. I was doomed to die right from the start. It was pure luck that I lived as long as I did, and that’s only because I was somehow born in a magicless world. Fate demanded I return to death, so the mirror brought me to this place to set things right.

There’s no escaping destiny, after all. History was always doomed to repeat. I was just another pawn in life’s cruel game, and instead of being a useful one… I was expendable. 

“It’s fine.” I choked out a weak laugh, brushing my bangs back with a grin even as the burning tears continued to fall. “I’m not even gonna last the year, am I? Hah...”

Mr. Horns furrowed his brows, looking at me with an expression I’ve never seen him wear before. “Child of man?” 

I thought things were going to get better from here on out, that maybe I could finally relax. That maybe I could handle this new and unwanted school life, laughing and having fun with all the friends I’ve made. Compared to the horrors I went through, surviving college and living in a dusty rundown dorm seemed easy.

Clearly that wasn’t the case. 

Gripping my hair tightly, my shoulders started to shake, leaving me trapped between laughter and a strangled sob. “How lovely.” I forced out, a strained grin on my lips as I blinked away the stinging in my eyes. 

He did say knowing might bring more harm than good, but I still asked for the truth regardless. 

“What was the point… in telling me not to die? In saying that you wouldn’t _let_ me die? I-It’s gonna… It’s gonna h-happen regardless, isn’t it?” 

I bit my lip, vision blurring so hard I couldn’t see anything but blobs of color, and I squeezed my eyes shut. My lips curled back and I choked, head shaking back-and-forth as I grit my teeth. 

“I-I don’t… e-even know what I d-did to… to _get_ cursed.” 

I haven’t the slightest idea. I’m still processing the fact that I apparently had a past life. That I originally belonged to this world. 

Damn it.

It hurts. It feels like molten lava is boiling inside my chest, and like a snake was coiled around my lungs- squeezing them until they were ready to burst. I can’t breathe and it hurts. 

I’m so scared. This is…

No, I don’t even know. It just feels like something inside of me had shattered. 

I think Mr. Horns stood up, but I wasn’t really paying that much attention. I was too busy wiping the never ending tears off my face, choking back the sob and coughs that were trying to escape, lungs very unhappy with all the stress they were under. 

“S-Seriously though,” I forced myself to say, still keeping that smile plastered on my face even though I wasn’t really looking at him, completely ignoring his approach, “thanks for… for telling me. I, um… I appreciate it. A-And…” 

There was the sound of footsteps and a tall shadow descended over me. I looked up, shaking, fingers lacing together so tight my knuckles went white.

“I’m sorry. Th-This was supposed to be a fun hang out, a-and I’m making a mess of it. ..See? D-Disaster human, just like I said.”

“That’s fine.” 

Something brushed the side of my face and I jolted, eyes wide as he gently pushed my arm out of the way, brushing my tears off my cheeks with his gloved fingers. His expression was hard to read, but there was something oddly soft in his eyes. 

“You humans _are_ quite emotional. I must admit, I expected a reaction like this once you learned the truth- though I can’t say it pleases me.”

“What?” I sniffled. A part of me wanted to pull away, to hide my gross crying face from him, but there was no point. He had already seen it, after all. “H-Hey, not… not _all_ humans are super emotional. Some… Some don’t even feel anything.” 

Mr. Horns hummed, rather amused by my pathetic attempt to defend humanity. “Is that so?” 

Biting my lip, I squeezed my eyes shut and nodded. I then leaned into his touch, desperate for some kind of comfort and physical contact. I heard him chuckle, but instead of feeling indignant or upset that he found humor in this, I was just glad he wasn’t bothered by me and my constant whirlwind of emotions. 

“Y-Yeah.” I shuddered at a breeze of cold wind. I gripped my fingers tightly, so many thoughts running through my mind.

“Which are you?” 

“Huh? Oh, uh…” I hiccuped again, struggling to try and keep myself from continuously shivering. 

It was really cold, and I couldn’t breathe very well, and I was terrified, and I was once again making a fool of myself in front of the one person I didn’t want to see me like this. 

“I’m… d-definitely… more o-on the, uh, emotional side.” I flashed a weak grin. “I thought th-that was fairly obvious. And, um…”

I blinked furiously, fighting another onslaught of tears. I reached up and placed my hands over the ones cupping my face, utterly defeated and maybe even just a bit broken. 

“S-Sorry. It’s nothing.” I forced myself to lift his hands off my face, once again choosing to deal with this pain on my own. I lowered my head, voice little more than a murmur. “Forget it…” 

Mr. Horns frowned, tilting his head as he stared at me. “I am not skilled in reading the hearts of others, child of man. If there is something on your mind, tell me with words.” 

I hesitated. I squeezed his hands, breathing uneven. “I-It’s… nothing. R-Really, I just… I just…” 

The next wave of tears started to fall as the emotions became too much, and I fell apart, sobbing. I was shaking, trembling uncontrollably as the fear of death took hold. 

I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think, I couldn’t hear or see- all I could do was _feel._

And it was awful, and painful, and frightening, and _alone,_ and there was no escape because despite everything I’ve done and been through and was planning to do was and is pointless because I’m going to _die_ and I can’t _do anything_ and I’m _scared_ and-

“I don’t- I don’t-“ I coughed harshly, holding on to his hands for dear life, as if doing so would somehow keep me alive just a bit longer. “I-I-I don’t- don’t _want_ to… to…! To die! I don’t-!”

Why? Why did this have to happen to me? I’m so scared. I don’t want to die like this! I don’t want to be cursed! I don’t want to go through any of this! 

I was hunching over at this point, my forehead pressed against his shoulder. The tears wouldn’t stop no matter how hard I tried, and I shuddered and gasped for air as I cried.

I’m not sure how much more of this my sanity can take. I don’t even think I have that much left, honestly. But… it’s fine. 

I’m fine. Everything… is…

It’s….

“Little human?” 

It’s not. It’s not fine. I’m not okay. Nothing is okay. 

I wheezed, clinging to every ounce of oxygen I could get. My fingers pulled at the black fabric of his jacket, and I was left hiccuping and letting out a small whimper as I cried into the chest of the person before me. 

A moment’s pause, and then a hand rested on my skull, fingers gently brushing through the strands of my hair. Mr. Horns leaned over, his other hand against my back. 

We stayed like that for a few minutes, and before long I was left completely drained and exhausted, cold and burning and possibly feverish. I felt almost numb, limbs having lost all strength, mind barely clinging to consciousness. 

“I’m… scared… I don’t…” 

“The curse was made with the _intent_ to kill you.” Mr. Horns stated, frowning deeply. 

To my alarm, he slid an arm beneath my legs and lifted me up, and I barely latched onto his jacket in time. I hiccuped, looking down at him in confusion and surprise, startled by how he was holding me so easily. Even more so by what he just said. 

“Y-Yeah, that’s… that’s the… p-problem.” I stammered.

“Indeed. And yet you’re forgetting one important thing.” My eyebrows furrowed at that. He lifted his head up, smirking at me with an arrogance that was actually quite comforting. “Your current name is under _my_ protection. You wish to know why the thorns retreated?”

No way…

The fireflies around us seemed to have doubled, his eyes glowing beautifully bright. I remained silent, both stunned by this reveal and mesmerized by his appearance. 

His gloved fingers brushed against my right cheek, and I closed my eyes in response to the touch. He cupped my face, smirk so broad his fangs could be seen. “It’s because _I_ burned them away.”

“Y-You did…?” 

After I saved Riddle and vomited all that blood… after I wound up in the infirmary- _dying_ \- being worked on by the nurse and so many doctors, about to die as the thorns ate away at my insides… 

The reason why I woke up, the reason why the curse retreated and I was able to see another day… was because of him? 

Mr. Horns saved me. And he’s saying… he’ll keep saving me? I’m not…

“I’m not g-gonna die?”

“No. Eleanora Quince,” He brushed my bangs out of my face, expression softening ever-so-slightly as a breeze blew by, “you are going to live. You are going to live because you are _forbidden_ from dying.” 

I stared at him for a minute, slowly processing those words, before my bottom lip quivered and I gave a weak nod.

Possessed with gratitude and an overwhelming amount of relief, I leaned down and wrapped my arms around his shoulders, burying my face into his neck and holding him tightly even as I continued to tremble.

He was so cold. He gave off not an ounce of warmth. In this icy weather it should be something to avoid, yet I was burning- and unlike the weather _his_ cold was very comforting. 

“Thank you… thank you...”

My fingers pulled at his jacket.

“I-I really… don’t want to die…” 

For a second, Mr. Horns tensed- and then he chuckled as he tightened his hold on me, pressing a hand to the back of my head almost possessively, holding me closer to him. 

“I will _never_ allow you to escape me.” He promised softly. “Even if you should come to wish for it in the future. Your name is mine, and with it your life. Death will never have a hold of you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So!! What’d you think? :3
> 
> El isn’t exactly subtle, is she? Lol. Though Mal isn’t either. I had to rewrite the middle and last scenes so many times to make it work. Aghhhh. He was fighting me hard core. 
> 
> Also! With that reveal of a certain character being confirmed half-fae, I changed up a paragraph in Once Upon A Tragedy to fit with canon. Also fae lore. Because I’m using quite a bit of fae lore in this fic. 
> 
> I really wanted them to hug in this chapter, so that last part was the best way I could make it happen. Maybe now El won’t panic so much over the curse since she knows Mr. Horns is gonna help her out. 
> 
> Ahem! As always, thank you for reading and letting me know what you think in the comments. 🤗❤️ Stay safe, and have a wonderful day/night!


	33. Cold To The Touch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m at the point where I can’t even tell if the chapter is good or not 😫😭

Those words filled me with more relief than I could possibly ever try to explain. 

They probably should have served as a warning, the danger that came with associating with a fae and giving them one’s name, but I couldn’t find it in me to care. I was just _so_ relieved, and filled with such an overwhelming sense of gratitude I thought I would melt there and then.

He _saved_ me.

When it really mattered, he found me and burned the thorns away just before the curse would kill me. He promised that he would _keep_ saving me. That he would stop at nothing to keep me alive- this insanely powerful immortal, a dragon faerie, was keeping me under his protection. 

He was even cradling me close now, as if I were somehow precious to him.

Mr. Horns…

Though exhausted and drained from everything, I nuzzled his shoulder- basking in his scent and touch as he held me to him. My heart filled with such ridiculous joy. 

Knowing he cared enough to save me, to have my name and not use it against me, to tell me the truth about the curse and to hold me close like this… it made my heart swell with warmth. 

Perhaps I should have been scared; his touch was just as affectionate as it was possessive. Cold and burning all at once. Faeries were often not to be trusted, after all. And this man… was probably the most dangerous of them all. 

A lonesome dragon who found a treasure in the form of a friend. 

He probably thought me weak and pathetic like everyone else in this school, but he never commented on it. No, Mr. Horns simply found amusement in my existence. But… that was okay. I didn’t mind that. 

I just wanted to be here with him. 

I just wanted to live, and… he was letting me do so. 

I breathed in deeply, finding myself rather calm rather than flustered or panicked. There was something very soothing in being held like this, with only the fireflies that illuminated the darkness around us for company. 

They were so very bright and bold and enchanting, and yet they paled in comparison to the beautiful chartreuse eyes that were observing me now. I could both feel and hear the heart that beat within Mr. Horns’ chest, the sensation doing wonders to keep me relaxed. 

“Such a small and emotional little human…” The dragon fae hummed. He pet my hair, amused by how I was clinging to him. “Have you calmed down at all?” 

A bit reluctant to release him, I gave a small nod, my fingers pulling at his jacket. I really didn’t want to let go. If I could, I would never leave his arms. I wanted to stay like this for eternity. 

It was just… so comforting. 

It was also the first time I really felt _protected_ or _safe._ He was such a strong presence. Not even Ace or Deuce with all their comfort and reassurance made me feel this way. I wondered if it had something to do with the sheer _magic_ that radiated from this man’s form or if it was just the effect of him having power over my name, but being held and being able to hold him like this…

It felt like no harm would ever come to me. 

As if he would never hurt me. There was just this irrational and unwavering sense of _trust_ towards this person, despite how little I really knew of him. In a weirder sense, it almost felt like I’ve always known this person. 

Like… he was always someone very important to me, even if I didn’t know it. Someone I had been waiting to find for a very long time. 

_A past life…_

I really wonder what it was I did, and who I had done it to. What was so awful that it led to such a hateful curse being casted? 

A white rose symbolizes purity and innocence, while red ones are passionate and symbolize romantic love. Additionally, white roses could also mean somebody unacquainted with love.

Together, the red and white roses are supposed to represent unity. 

_But a white rose stained red with blood…_

Perhaps… no. I might be looking too much into things. Yet in the off chance I’m right, what on earth could be done to break the curse? Just how much has the past been repeating itself? 

I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply and basking in the calming scent of the man holding me. An incredibly powerful faerie was the one who cast the curse, one who had been in possession of my previous name. 

_If… I had fallen in love with a powerful faerie, but the relationship turned out toxic and I tried to leave…_

I bit my lip, nibbling on the flesh as I tried to figure things out. 

_...or, maybe, if that faerie had forced their feelings onto me and I tried to escape, and that enraged them… it’s highly possible. That could be why I’m cursed._

I’m not exactly someone who would take things lying down if it bothered me or was deemed a dangerous situation. Recent events have proved that. And yet here I am already head over heels for someone who matched very closely the description of the magician who cursed me. 

It wasn’t him, I know that, but still. It was eerily coincidental, even if it was probably nothing. I most likely just have bad taste in men. 

_Although, strictly speaking, who is to say that the person who cursed me was male?_

I tightened my grip on Mr. Horns before pulling away, sniffling and looking down at him. My head really hurt after all that crying, and my eyes were swollen as all frick. I must look horrendous. I’m not even sure why he lifted me up in the first place. I was a complete wreck. 

“I’m… sorry.” I mumbled quietly, wiping my sleeves against my face. It was seriously starting to feel like I only ever showed him the worst parts of myself. “I’m… always crying.”

He stared at me intently after I said that, charcoal lips tilting down in a small frown. 

“You apologize quite frequently.” The dragon fae commented, narrowing his eyes. His voice became accusatory, almost as if he were annoyed. “Do you believe that you’re _burdensome_ , child of man? That I am bothered by your presence?”

My mouth opened to respond, but I closed it. I glanced awkwardly to the side and then back at him. He hit right on the mark. “M-Maybe.” 

“Rid yourself of the thought.”

“What?” I blinked and looked at him with wide eyes, surprised by how serious he had gotten all of a sudden. 

He frowned at me, reaching a hand up. I made a small noise of complaint when he placed his hand over the upper half of my face, blocking my vision. The coolness of his glove soothed the burning of my eyes, and I silenced myself- deciding to just let whatever happens happen. 

“You trouble yourself over the most ridiculous of things, child of man.” He stated. Mr. Horns began to speak more sternly, and I could almost imagine the frown on his pretty charcoal-colored lips. “Such needless thoughts should be forgotten, left to perish in the wind alongside the fog that clouds your gaze.”

“O-Okay…” 

He slowly lowered his hand and I blinked, tilting my head at him with a small pout. I was so confused. Was he trying to make me feel better? If so, he had a really strange way of doing so. I shook my head, expression softening as a small timid grin spread on my face. 

He was so cute and sweet, I wasn’t sure if my heart could handle it. “You’re super weird, Mr. Horns.”

He stared at me intently after I said that, his gaze piercing into me for a long moment. Then his lips twitched up into a smirk and he reached up, cupping my chin and startling me. “Just like that.” 

My face began to burn, suddenly all too aware of his touch. “Uh, w-what-?” 

“When you speak to me,” Mr. Horns informed, that infamous look of complete confidence that borderlined arrogance still on his infuriatingly gorgeous face, “I would much prefer it if your eyes looked like this.”

Ohhh… that makes sense.

_Wait._

Holy shit. Oh my gods. 

I swallowed thickly, biting the inside of my cheek hard, trying to hide the way my bottom lip began to tremble as he stared up at me with that heart-snatching smirk, his chartreuse eyes on the very cusp of laying claim to my soul. 

_I’m in trouble._

He seriously had no idea what it was he does to me, because _fuck me_ I think I just died a little inside from that line he said. Who did he think he was- a poet? Prince Charming? I’m going to lose my mind by simply talking to this man. 

_Ughhh._ I quickly leaned down and buried my face in his neck, too embarrassed to look at him. He chuckled again at my actions, seeming to find them either amusing or endearing- I’m not sure which- and held me even closer as a result. _He’s gonna keep me alive, but at what cost? My heart?_

I tightened my grip and let out a small yelp when he suddenly began walking, the man stepping onto the porch steps. 

“It would be best if you turned in for the night.” He informed me. “It would not bode well if you were to fall sick.” 

Yeah, that’s… true. Although I’m pretty sure I already have a fever. 

I pouted, clinging to him tighter, face buried in the crook of his neck. My voice was muffled as I selfishly mumbled, “I don’t wanna.” I would stay out here forever if it meant being able to keep hugging him.

Mr. Horns paused at that, clearly surprised by my words, and started laughing. I tried not to feel anymore embarrassed or flustered than what I already was, but it was quite difficult. 

“You sound like a spoiled child.”

“...You’re the one who’s spoiling me.”

He hummed, amusement strong in his voice. “Is that so?” 

I gave a small nod, still hiding my expression from him. He chuckled again and took a few more steps, stopping just under the dorm’s excess roof. He leaned down, and not having much of a choice I reluctantly released him, hands sliding off his shoulders and down his chest as my feet touched the wooden porch. 

“Perhaps I should spoil you more then.” Huh? 

I looked up, startled, only to feel a strong wave of tiredness wash over me when he rested a hand gently upon my cheek. I stumbled, legs almost giving out as my forehead bumped against his chest, a yawn escaping my lips. 

I was just about to fall sideways when he caught me, a hand on my waist holding me up. It was hard just trying to keep my eyes open. 

Did he… cast a spell on me? Rude. 

I tensed when his arms slid around me fully, the shock of his touch almost snapping me back into full awareness had the magic not been so strong. 

“You really are so small…” Mr. Horns murmured, resting his chin on my head, my sleepy mind barely picking up the words. His voice was a low murmur, almost thoughtful in tone, and sent pleasant chills along my skin. “Should I ever desire it, there would be no difficulty in stealing you away. Hidden from the world, far from mankind… hoarded like the finest jewels within a mountain of treasure.” 

What the heck? 

“Someone… would notice…” I argued weakly, my words slurring a bit as I found myself drifting off. 

He hummed again, and I shivered as a breeze blew by. Rather than being frightened by his words, I nuzzled my face against him- basking in his comforting scent. He felt so nice. 

“My friends…” I continued, blinking away some sleepy tears. A small yawn made itself known. “They would… fight…” 

The second they noticed my absence they would come to find me. I have no doubt about it. It was just how much they cared. 

“It isn’t likely that they would win.” Mr. Horns stated, not at all perturbed. In the back of my mind, I thought about how odd this conversation was. “They wouldn’t even come close to laying a scratch on me. You would be locked away in the highest room in the tallest tower, and none other than myself would know you exist there.” 

A weak grin curled on my lips, eyes closed as I tiredly imagined the thought. “As if. Last time I checked, I’m not some… freaking story book princess.” 

I tugged weakly at his jacket hem, giggling.

“If you’re whisking me away, does that mean… you’re gonna be… the dragon that guards me?”

“...You could say that.” 

“Then… what about… my storybook prince?” I yawned and then shivered again, snuggling closer to his chest despite the lack of warmth his cold blooded body gave off. I felt like I was burning despite this icy weather. His heartbeat was extremely soothing and distracting. “Every… fairy tale princess needs one… although…”

There was a moment of silence where I almost fell asleep. In the depths of my imagination, I pondered if my captor, the dragon, could also be my prince. It would certainly be a twist- a bit dark in nature, perhaps, but I enjoyed the thought. 

Considering the curse, it probably wasn’t a good thing. 

Mr. Horns leaned closer, and when he spoke his voice sounded like it was right next to my ear. There was something in the tone of which he spoke- an emotion I couldn’t quite describe. “Although…?” 

“...If you’re the dragon…” 

My voice grew softer, eyes closed as my tired head turned in the direction I heard him speak. His hair tickled my nose.

“...then I think I’d be fine being stuck in a tower. Ah, but… I’d still like to see my friends. So maybe not. I’m not… sure. You would… let them visit, right?”

I’m this close to falling asleep in his arms. Seriously, where did this bout of sleepiness come from? I was exhausted from crying, but I didn’t feel so groggy until recently. Jerk totally used his magic on me. 

“...Perhaps. If it would keep you near me.” 

I gave a small nod, eyes closing. “Sounds like… a plan.” 

He laughed. The sound was music to my ears, and I couldn’t help the disappointment I felt when he pulled away. Mr. Horns cupped my cheeks, grinning down at me in both amusement and glee, and then I found myself being guided to the door with his hand on my back. 

“Go to sleep, child of man. I’ll see you soon.”

“That better... be a promise.” I stepped back, yawning louder than last time with a hand over my mouth, wobbling to the door as my legs almost gave out. “Goodnight~!” 

I barely heard him say, after a moment’s pause, the very same words back to me as I fumbled to open the door. A lazy smile and wave, and then I closed the door and stumbled forward- collapsing immediately onto the pile of mattresses and falling asleep within seconds. 

I don’t really remember what I dreamed or if I dreamed at all, mind entering the realm of rest so deep that any and all exhaustion ebbed away. It really did feel like a spell had been cast over me. 

I didn’t even wake up until Grim began pawing at my face in the morning, the cat monster awoken by the ghosts for school. I mumbled incoherently, swollen eyes too heavy to want to open, my head throbbing with a migraine. When I tried to sit up I was left breathless, lungs stuttering and failing to work as sickness took hold. I felt both burning and cold, and I realized right away I was ill. 

I couldn’t tell if it was another lung infection or just a simple cold, but either way it was a nuisance. 

It was easy to figure out why it had happened, though it wasn’t like I was happy about it. Wheezing, I flinched when I found myself breaking into harsh wet coughs, and I ended up sniffling not long after. 

How lovely this was. _Blegh_. 

Nearly falling over when I stood up, I took a few steps to the staircase before having to stop and lean against a wall- vision blackening right quick. I could hear Grim calling out to me, probably questioning if something was wrong, but his words didn’t quite make it to my ears. I knew he was speaking, yet what was said was unknown. All I could focus on was my own pounding heartbeat and the pain in my skull. 

_Ace and Deuce are gonna kill me._

Forget the curse- with Mr. Horns’ help I’m not too anxious over it anymore, but if my friends found out the reason why I was sick? Oho, I was as good as gone. They would never let me live it down if they learned that I had a secret hang out with someone they found super suspicious. 

With the state my body was in, it took me a few minutes to reach the bathroom. 

Getting ready took even longer, and I almost passed out when I went to use my medicine. I spent so long sitting there that I actually did fall asleep, and a pair of hands poking at my face repeatedly woke me. I let out a miserable groan, groggily opening my eyes only to blink when a familiar ginger clapped his hands in front of me. 

“-ello~!? Ah, you’re awake.” Ace frowned, squatting down and holding a hand up in front of me. “Dude, you’re burning! What the hell?” 

Deuce hit the button on the machine, turning it off. The mouthpiece had long since fallen into my lap. “Was it because of stress? Trey said that stress can affect your lungs…” 

When was that? Was it after I left their dorm yesterday? Maybe it was when I was unconscious. Regardless, it wasn’t like I could tell them whether they were wrong or not about how I got like this. 

I was going to have to sit on a throne of lies- although, with how long I’ve been hiding my curse, one could argue that I was already _on_ that throne. 

Gods, it hurt. It legit feels like only one lung was working, and that it already seems to be failing. 

“It can’t be healthy for you to stay in this dorm with your lungs so messed up.” Ace grimaced, watching my pathetic self fighting to breathe. He looked around at the dilapidated building we were in. “Seriously, I don’t understand what that headmaster of ours is thinking. Maybe we can convince Riddle to let her stay in the lounge or something...”

“Should…” Deuce glanced at Ace and Grim, and then down at me. “Should we take her to the infirmary?”

“I’m… f… fine…” 

Damn it. I can barely even talk. I waved a hand at them, arm slumping against the ground as I fell back against the wall after trying to stand, already drained when the day hadn’t even really begun. 

“Just… Just go…” 

Ace ruffled his hair and leaned his head back with an exasperated sigh. “It’s seriously one thing after another with you. Deuce, grab her. I’ll tell the teachers what’s up.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but found in the end that I couldn’t. The moment I found a pair of arms hoisting me up in a fashion I had grown most used to, the air left my lungs as though someone had taken a vacuum and forcibly sucked it all away. 

I gasped, choking on nothing as I frantically rammed a fist repeatedly against my chest, and when I finally managed to obtain the sweet taste of oxygen once more… I gave up. My head hit Deuce’s shoulder and I closed my eyes, wheezing and focusing only on the shallow intake of air. 

Gods, I hated this. I almost preferred coughing up roses. 

_So much for all that make-up work…_

Giving in to my fate, I let out a shaky sigh and I tried to relax when I felt him start to walk. Any words he, Ace, or even Grim said fell on deaf ears. Mr. Horns was totally going to make fun of me if he found I got sick- even after he pretty much told me not to. Ugh. 

As my friends walked outside, carrying me with them, my lungs stuttered in response to the fresh and clean air. As a result I started to breathe heavier, organs trying to adapt to a place without dust and mold. 

I think I passed out a bit, as the next time I awoke I was laying down on an infirmary bed.

There were voices- one I recognized as the nurse, but the other… sounded really young? 

“-thought it was a boys only school!” 

“It is.” An older, more masculine one said. It was the nurse. 

“But she’s not a boy!” The childish voice protested. “That means girls can go here, too!” 

I grimaced, eyebrows furrowing as I struggled to wake. My face felt a bit heavy- am I wearing an oxygen mask? What the heck? Gods, it’s still cold. I’m burning. 

Groggily opening my eyes, I blinked to see a round and unfamiliar child staring at me. 

She was around maybe seven or eight? She looked a lot like the nurse, what with her brown skin and purple irises. Her black-and-white hair was pulled into twin pigtails, the style almost reminding me of a poodle. 

The girl leaned further onto the bed, staring at me such an intensity it was unnerving. A large grin spread on her face. “You’re awake! How are you feeling? Daddy said he’d take care of you until you’re _all_ better!” 

...I think I’m still dreaming.

Drained, I closed my eyes again- quickly falling back into sleep. When I awoke the second time, the small child was gone. It was just Nurse Salvador in the room, with the occasional injured student who would come in for treatment. I was fully convinced that the girl had been a hallucination. 

I was the only girl in Night Raven College, wasn’t I? If not, then why did everyone make such a big deal about it? Besides, what would a little kid be doing here? 

I grimaced when Nurse Salvador had me take some cough medicine and antibiotics, the man noting that I had indeed gotten a lung infection. When I asked why I wasn’t given a potion like last time, he said it was because the reaction had been so severe.

“You’ll be fine.” He said, smiling softly as he ruffled my hair. “I’ll make sure you have a full recovery.” 

That would be nice. I seriously thought I would be able to relax for once, and then… well- maybe it shouldn’t be so surprising to have something get in the way anymore. 

A few hours passed before I was allowed to eat lunch, and I chewed my food slowly as I tried to remember all that happened last night. There was the joking around and the detective comments, and then there was that big reveal. I still can’t believe Mr. Horns was the one to save me. 

And then… he… 

I lowered my head, not removing the spoon from my face as my cheeks flared red. Combined with my fever, it left me rather dizzy- but all I could think about was the way he easily lifted me up with one arm, allowing me to hug him tight as I broke down.

It was… really embarrassing, now that I’m looking back at it. Gods, I can’t believe I behaved like that. Why was he so okay with it? 

I feel like something even more embarrassing happened after that, like right before I fell asleep, but I couldn’t remember what it was for the life of me.

I set the spoon in the bowl and pressed a hand to my face, palm feeling very cold against the fire that was my skin. He said he wasn’t very good at speaking with humans or even interacting with them, so I doubt he realized that I had feelings for him. There was no way he was flirting back. 

Was it because I kept being so touchy-feely with him? Does he think that’s just a normal human thing? I never freaking picked him up though! He did that on his own. 

Oh my _gods_ this was a mess. 

I’ve never been so close- or, well, held so intimately by a man before! Especially one I had feelings for. The whole thing felt super intimate, but maybe that was just my perception of the situation. It probably didn’t mean anything to him.

Which… would probably be for the best. 

If it did, then I’m not so sure how much longer I could hold out in my decision of avoiding relationships. I don’t think I would have the strength. I’d probably give in right away if he said or did something. 

I dragged my hand down my face, berating myself mentally, before continuing to eat. I shivered and sniffled, nose running, and coughed into my shoulder. When I was done, I set the tray on the nightstand next to me. 

Only _Mr. Horns_ could mess with my brain like this, I swear. That man- no, dragon faerie, makes me question every life decision I’ve ever made like it was nothing. Ugh. 

_I want to hate him so bad, but…_

I pressed the back of my hand to my mouth, feeling myself warm again as I thought about last night.

_...I only keep falling harder for him._

Freaking jerk. I let out a sigh, leaning against the bed frame and pillows, dropping my hands into my lap. He didn’t seem like someone who would betray me, nonetheless hurt me, and the reveal that he’s been protecting me from the curse only made this situation worse. 

Trey said to take things slow. That I should get to know the person I’m interested in over time. 

Yet now… I’m learning so many things so quickly, it’s hard to keep up. I’m still reeling from the whole past life revelation. Seriously, what was up with that? 

I’m fully aware that magic and monsters exist, but being told reincarnation was actually a thing? That being so... there’s no chance of breaking this curse.

Mr. Horns can keep it at bay, stop it from killing me, but the pain from the thorns would still exist. I would still wind up coughing up blood and white rose petals when the curse decides to act up again. It hurts. 

I don’t… want to go through that again. 

But the promise of survival is… worth it, isn’t it? I should be able to handle some pain. The only issue is that it’s _excruciating_ and _slow_ and it scares me. 

My fingers grabbed at the blankets, teeth worrying my bottom lip as all the worst case scenarios ran through my mind. How much longer will I even be able to hide my condition from my friends? The only ones who know are the two faeries I’ve encountered, and to a certain extension the ghosts.

There’s no way they would just abandon me, not after all we’ve been through. 

But, knowing that I’ve been hiding it for so long, they might still get upset. Deuce said me keeping quiet about things only makes them worry more, so I _know_ I need to tell them. 

I just… 

I swallowed thickly, eyes burning slightly as I gripped the blankets tightly. 

I’m just scared. I don’t even know how to begin explaining. What sane person can just waltz up to the people they care about and so casually mention that they’ve been coughing blood? That they have thorns in their lungs and a rose in their mouth? 

There’s so many issues with that approach alone. 

“How have your injuries been feeling?” The nurse suddenly asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I blinked, startled, and looked up at him when he approached my bedside. Sitting down next to me, I froze upon feeling the cold touch of a thermometer against my forehead. A few seconds passed, the device beeped, and he glanced at the numbers. 

Nurse Salvador let out a small sigh. “The fever went down a little, but… it’s still too high.” 

He lifted his purple gaze up to meet mine, a frown on his lips. I tried not to get distracted by the glitter on his blue eyeshadow. He was seriously pretty. 

“How do your lungs feel? Can you breathe any better, or does your chest hurt- like it’s swelling up from inside?”

Oh. That’s a question I can answer. I tilted my head, thinking about how to phrase my words. “Honestly, it’s… still kinda hard to breathe. Better than… this morning. Back home, the doc would… give me steroids and antibiotics.”

“Did those help you?” He inquired. 

It was surprising how gentle he sounded, but then my mind went back to what one of my teachers said- how this person took his job very seriously. Divus seemed to have so much faith in this man. For someone so scary and not often one to give out praise, he really approved of the school nurse. 

Worrying my bottom lip, I gave a small nod. I had to remind myself that Nurse Salvador was also the person who tended to me after the Overblot; he was the one who kept me alive long enough for the surgeons to arrive. 

“Y-Yeah.” I cleared my throat, wheezing a little. “I-I got sick a lot, and it would almost always be the same thing, and since they worked…”

I gave a small shrug. 

The nurse held a hand to his chin. “I see. I suppose I can put in a request, then. Potions are still a bit tricky when it comes to you, but this should be safe… but- _oh!_ One more thing.”

My nose scrunched in confusion, brows furrowing. He tapped his cheek, grinning. Not understanding, I raised my own hands to my face to feel for what he was trying to say- only to have my eyes widen in understanding. “Ohh…”

“I’m gonna take off that bandage real quick to make sure there isn’t an infection. With how old that dorm you live in is, I don’t want to risk it.” 

“That’s… true.” I could still recall some of the suspicious mushrooms I found growing in some particularly moldy places when I was getting ready to meet Mr. Horns last night. “O-Okay.”

I wonder if I’ll ever meet him during the day. The library meeting was afternoon, and the flying class was solely because I had to go out of my way to hunt him down. Seeing as he’s a third year, I probably won’t even get the chance to see him by sheer coincidence unless either of us make the effort to look for each other. 

Aww, that’s… depressing. 

I wonder if he would even want to look for me. I only ever seemed to cause him trouble, after all. But then again, he did say not to view myself as a burden. 

He said… that he wanted the doubt to disappear alongside the fog that clouds my gaze… or something like that. 

I could feel my face warm again at the thought. Honestly, I’m not even sure what about him had me falling head over heels anymore. There were just so many factors that kept adding up and making me even _more_ of a mess as he only grew more attractive. 

There literally wasn’t anything for me to name. It was just _him_ as a whole. Mr. Horns. I want him, and I want to know more about him, and I want to keep learning more about him, and I want to be _beside_ him. Ugh. 

He just had to be the one person who can help me with my curse. If he ever finds out, will… he hate me? Will he be so disturbed that he just lets the curse kill me? I… I’m scared. I don’t want that. 

I’ll… suffer the thorns and the coughing up blood and even the dreams, just… so long as he doesn’t abandon me. Please. I’ll live with the curse as long as this awful world makes me. If it comes down to it, I’ll risk myself to stop any other Overblots. 

Just don’t _betray_ me. 

Feeling the nurse grip the edge of my bandage, preparing to yank it off, I squeezed my eyes shut- my skull throbbing just slightly as a flash of green flame and a silver ring came to mind. It worsened, the headache stretching into unbearable as a _scream_ of pure desperation rang in my mind- but then the feeling of the bandage being ripped off my cheek snapped me out of it with a small hiss and my eyes opening wide.

I resisted the urge to press a hand to the throbbing cheek, pouting, my sinuses acting up a bit at the pain, and I sniffled. Looking up at the nurse, I was surprised to find that he was… startled… by something. 

“What?” He was looking at me like I was an alien. Oh, wait. I kinda was, actually. Lame. Was the wound actually infected? “I-Is something wrong?”

“N-Nothing’s wrong.” Nurse Salvador answered with a small stammer. Confusion formed on his beautiful face. “In fact, it’s… completely healed. 

I started blankly, brain taking a second to process that. “...Wait, what? Seriously?” 

That doesn’t make any sense. I should still have an extra day or two of healing unless the nurse used his _unique magic_ on me today. But he hasn’t yet, so how is it healed? 

“Lilia definitely only healed my ankle,” I said, hands raising up to smack my completely healed and not all scarred cheeks, absolutely baffled by this discovery, “so why…” 

Oh. Oh my gods. 

Realization hit me like a brick to the head, my eyes widening as my head shot up. Nurse Salvador leaned back, surprised by my quick movement, and he watched as several emotions came flashing across my face. 

Last night Mr. Horns pressed his hands to my cheeks several times. I thought I was just being overly sensitive or just too aware of his presence, but could it have actually been his _magic_ I had felt that made my skin feel so tingly? Did he heal me? 

Why? How come? 

I kept my palms pressed to my cheeks, rubbing at the clear skin, still trying to process that the cuts were gone. “He didn’t even tell me…” 

Nurse Salvador tilted his head, lilac gaze intense. “Pardon? Who is “he”? Did a student do this?” 

I looked up at the man, a bit nervous. “I-I think. I have this friend, and he might have been the one who healed it, but he… never said anything about it. So…”

The nurse frowned and folded his arms over his chest, bandage discarded into the nearby trash can. “I suppose we should thank him, then. What’s his name and class?” 

Frick. 

I tensed, suddenly even more awkward and flustered. I fiddled with my fingers, unsure of how to answer. “Th-That, um… I mean, his class is 3-D, but his name is, well… he won’t tell me.”

Nurse Salvador blinked. “I’m sorry?” 

“H-He thinks I’ll be scared of him if I know!” I blurted out, unable to bring myself to look at the violet-haired man as images and memories of the dragon fae came flashing into my mind. I glanced to the side, worrying my bottom lip. “He… He lets me call him by a nickname instead.” 

Okay, the nurse definitely thought my immortal friend sounded sketchy. That raised eyebrow confirmed it. “What’s the nickname?”

“M…” 

Gods, I can’t do this. It’s too embarrassing. I looked down at my lap, feeling my face burn so hot it felt like it was on fire. My heart was pounding like crazy, leaving me a bit breathless and dizzy. Ducking down until my face was buried in my arms, my voice was an awkward mumble. 

“Mister… Horns…” 

The man known as Poma Salvador stared, his expression going blank for a moment before his eyes widened in realization, and then he stood up and whirled around, walking a few steps away and standing there for a few seconds before just _bursting_ out into laughter. “M-Mr. _Horns!?”_

It was as if a switch had been flipped. 

He was cackling like a maniac, a hand to his lips and an arm around his stomach, his sweet persona gone as tears welled up in his eyes. “B-Bwahaha! I-I can’t believe- _him of all people-_ ahahaha!”

Oh no. 

He knew who it was, didn’t he? Damn it. 

Mr. Horns really was someone of importance. I let out a small groan, burying my face even farther into my arms, hunched over as far as possible despite how much it cut off my air flow. It was somewhat humiliating to have someone else laugh at the ridiculous nickname I gave to someone so high up in the social hierarchy. 

“P-Please stop…” 

Suddenly Lilia’s reaction to the nickname feels like a blessing. This right here was pure torture. 

“I’m- I’m sorry, I just-!” Nurse Salvador collapsed against a wall, still cackling like a mad man. “ _Mr. Horns!_ Honey, you have no _idea_ about who’s favor you’ve obtained! Holy…” 

He coughed a bit, choking on his own laughter, wiping the tears from his eyes. 

“My goodness… that was amazing. Thank you for that.” 

I grimaced, not at all pleased. “You’re welcome.” 

Nurse Salvador smiled at me softly, before standing up straight and fixing his labcoat. “Anyhow, back to business… it’s a relief that your _friend_ has helped you. As much as I would have rather he had informed me of this beforehand, there’s nothing much I can do about that. He’s a bit of a… well, I shouldn’t say. I’ve never actually had much contact with Mr. Dra-er, Mr. Horns. He’s not exactly one to get hurt or ill, you see.” 

Reluctantly poking my face out from behind my arms, I looked up at the man. “Because… he’s so powerful?” 

His purple eyes glimmered in amusement, an arm crossed over his chest with a hand to his chin. “Precisely. Most fear him, while others are envious. Sometimes it’s both. When you see him, you can _feel_ his magic in the air- around him even- as it’s so abundant. I heard that when he was child, he had so _much_ magic it was hard to control it.” 

I had a feeling I knew who told him that. 

_Lilia._ Once a father, always a father. _He probably has a wallet full of photos or something._

I can just imagine him bragging about Silver and Mr. Horns, and showing off every single baby picture imaginable. Gods, that would be so cute; I want to see them! “Baby Horns” and “Baby Silver”. They must be the absolute cutest! 

Aghhhh-! 

My heart almost wants to combust at the thought. Forget dying by my friends or by the curse; I was gonna die by the sheer cuteness my imagination was trying to show me. 

“I think… it was said that there was a Halloween where he accidentally lit all the houses aflame?” 

Suddenly, the cuteness was cut to an abrupt stop. I blinked, expression falling into one of disbelief and almost dread as I tried to figure out what sort of situation would lead to that. My brain didn’t even register that they shared a holiday with my homeworld. “You’re… kidding, right?” 

“No, no.” Nurse Salvador waved a hand, laughing again. “It’s all true! I think he was trying to light some lanterns? Or maybe it was candles… As a child, he let his excitement get the better of him and _swoosh-!_ The entire village was set aflame.” 

Holy shit. 

Sir. No. That isn’t funny. Frick. “W-Were the people okay?” 

Leaning against the wall, the man tilted his head to the side, some curly dark violet locks of hair falling into his eyes. “Um… as far as I’m aware. The kingdom he’s from runs almost solely on magic- technology isn’t something that’s well known. They probably had all the magicians use magic to extinguish the fires.”

Oh. Well, that’s… better. Still, while the thought of an excited small version of Mr. Horns was adorable, the idea of an entire village being set aflame was considerably less so. 

An abrupt knock on the door caught our attention, ending our conversation. Slowly opening the door, a familiar face peered in- with neatly brushed red hair and concerned grey eyes. “Eleanora?”

Riddle walked in, cautiously looking around before landing his gaze on me. He brightened, but then frowned- becoming more serious. Sitting up straight, I gave a small and uncertain wave. 

This was one heck of a moment for him to walk in on, but then again… ah-well, it could be worse. Last time he was super guilty for hurting me, and I sort of convinced him to cry in my arms. Oh jeez... 

Another moment I feel weird looking back on. 

“Are you alright?” The redhead inquired, concerned. “Ace, Deuce, and Grim told everyone you were in the infirmary again…” 

Quickly forcing a smile, I gave a quick wave. “I’m fine~ I just… couldn’t handle the cold very well.” 

Riddle quickly grew alarmed. “Is the abandoned dorm _that_ bad?” 

I mean, it’s definitely ten times worse than what you’re thinking, but that’s not the reason why. Riddle doesn’t have to know that, though. I was taking the secret hangout with me to the grave. “A-A bit, yeah. Aside from all the mold and mushrooms and bugs and… stuff…”

He crossed his arms, face twisting into that of frustration and almost annoyance. “The headmaster truly… no, nevermind. I’ll see what I can do later when I’m not busy. Aside from just checking up on you, I-” 

Riddle cleared his throat, coughing into a fist. His cheeks were dusted a light pink. 

“I wanted to let you know that we got approval for you to have an Unbirthday Party uniform. I hope you don’t mind that it’s a dress; we wanted to continue with the tradition of the Queen of Hearts, and in the legends there were mentions of a girl in blue...” 

“Alice?” 

He blinked. “...Huh?” 

I tilted my head. “Alice. It’s… _Alice in Wonderland_ , right? She fell down a rabbit hole and wound up in a world of madness, and… met a bunch of… weird people trying to get back home. The queen was one of them.” 

Riddle looked truly surprised. “I… yes. That’s her, actually. She was considered a criminal who had insulted the queen, and was put on trial.” 

I remember. I remember it all too well. 

I was there, after all. 

Inside the cursed dreams, I had been Alice. 

“Of course, she was supposed to have lost her head, but…” Riddle hummed, closing his eyes as he went into deep thought. “In the story, she managed to escape. I’m not too terribly fond of her as she _was_ a criminal, but she has become an important figure when telling stories of Unbirthday Parties- and of the legend itself. Of course, not as important as the Queen of Hearts, but…” 

His expression softened, and he looked back at me. I blinked, a bit startled by the look in his eyes. 

“I think it fits, no? Alice fell into a world far from her own, where magic and madness existed, and made many friends along the way. There, she met the incredibly strict Queen of Hearts…” Riddle stepped forward, taking a seat on the bed and sitting beside me. “Does it not sound a lot like you? You who came to Twisted Wonderland, to Night Raven College, and met a talking cat monster and a dorm leader who was ever so strict with his rules…” 

This is… making me slightly uncomfortable. 

I leaned back a little, trying not to make my discomfort noticeable by acting like I was thinking about his words. “Hrm… maybe.” I flashed a grin, holding a finger up. “I’d rather not be accused of plagiarism though. I want to believe that I’m at least a _little_ bit original.” 

“You are.” He stated firmly. I jolted, once again shocked by him. Riddle was completely serious. “You are similar due to your situations, but make _no doubt_ that you are the only one of your kind. Eleanora, you are the only _you_ anyone will ever know. I could never even _think_ about replacing you with another.” 

O-Okay, this is getting into another dangerously close confession-sounding type speech…

“Th-Thank… you?” I awkwardly raised a hand up, putting as much distance as I could without making it so obvious, and pat him on the head. “You’re pretty original yourself, Riddle.” 

The hardness of his expression fell away into a much softer and warmer smile. “I’m truly glad I got to meet you, Eleanora. Please, get better soon. I’ll make sure Ace and Deuce deliver your make-up work to you after classes.” 

Oh, wow. How nice. Gods, I was going to have a mountain of homework. Ew. Riddle placed a hand to his chin as he stood up, the boy getting ready to leave. He was muttering to himself, but it was just loud enough that I could still hear him. 

“I should also make you some notes to help you catch up… it is my fault you missed so many days of class, after all...“ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alrighty! I did it! This chapter gave me massive writers block and I rewrite so many times I have no idea anymore. But! What’d you guys think? That flashback of flame and a silver ring was interesting, right? 👀
> 
> Also, who was that little girl? HRRRMMM.


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